The Earthbound Journey: An Inheritance Cycle Continuation: Book 1
by Kionzel
Summary: Damien always wished to learn more about the world of Alagaesia. The story of Eragon and Saphira and their transformation into the heroes of Alagaesia made him long to live another life. He got his wish, after dying trying to save someone's life, he was reborn into another world. The world of Alagaesia. Was this a blessing? Book 1 The Inheritance Cycle Fan Continuation
1. Chapter 1

Damien turned the last page of the book. It was probably the fifth time he had finished _Inheritance_, the fourth book in the _Inheritance _cycle series of books made by Christopher Paolini. He loved the series to death and could often get lost in the chapters and words, envisioning himself there with Eragon and company, fighting the evil empire. He could get so caught up in reading that he could often forget-.

The sound of the Library's closing bell shocked him from his reverent silence.

"SHOOT!" He rasped, "It's almost 9 PM!"

He put down the book on the return desk and walked quickly out the door. He had lost track of time and had to hurry home before his parents decided to look for him. He quickly put on a bicycle helmet and unchained a green and black hybrid bike from a rack, fumbling with the straps as he rolled down the hill. Gripping the handles till his hands hurt he began to race home, legs pumping like train pistons as he raced home. Even if he pedaled at high speeds, he'd still take 30 minutes to make it home, and he was already hour late.

"My parents are going to kill me!" He moaned, redoubling his efforts.

As he rounded a hill, he saw 2 figures silhouetted in the darkness. He narrowed his eyes and after a lucky break of cloud cover the moonlight revealed a man chasing someone with a knife. Not thinking Damien pedaled faster, attempting to crash into the knife wielder. The man heard the sound of Damien's bike too late, falling to the ground as the teen crashed into him. Both bodies landed on the ground, the knife spinning in the air before clattering a few feet away. Damien got up first, looking around in a panic before seeing the knife, reflecting the moonlight off its blade as it shined over the grass. He ran to it, but was tripped as the man grabbled him by the leg. Damien scrabbled up but the man was faster, grabbing the knife and staring at Damien with wild eyes.

"Typical, all you stupid people, you'll take their side over mine!" He begins waiving the knife threateningly, "You had to butt in! Could have turned the other way, but no! Someone's always got to be a hero!" He spat in Damien's face. Damien took a step back and glanced around, this enraged the man, who roared, "Eyes here!" He screamed, charging at Damien.

Damien ducked under the man's wide swipe, picking up a large stick, he swung down, forcing the man to sidestep to avoid it. The man's smug grin turned sour as he stepped on a loose rock, twisting his ankle on the uneven footing. Damien took the opportunity to swing the stick once more, catching the man on the side of the head. After a vicious thwack, the man fell. Damien took out his phone, preparing to call an ambulance and the police. He turned to look at the person he rescued, a young woman in her early-to-mid-twenties. Damien's face grew hot slightly as he looked at her pretty face and curvaceous body. Clearing his throat and trying to sound a bit more adult, he smiled and spoke.

"Are you alright miss?"

"Do I look alright!?" she retorted angrily. "That guy tried to murder me, all because I stole 100 stupid bucks off him at the night club!" Her voice was slurred from drinking, and she looked unfocused and angry. She kicked at his sides viciously, then began to kick at his head.

"Hey! Stop that!" Damien ran up to grab and stop her just as she was reaching for the knife. "He's already knocked out! You could kill him if you keep going!"

The woman struggled against his hold and kneed Damien in the pelvis, Damien felt weak at the knees. As he doubled over in pain the woman pushed him hard, causing him to tumble into the road. As he fell the light of a semi-truck bathed him in a harsh radiance. The driver of the vehicle, noticing Faris too late, attempted to swerve his truck out of the way, but he had no time. Damien had no time either, but it seemed as if the world had slowed down, each instant feeling like minutes. He closed his eyes, preparing for the flash of pain, but felt nothing but an odd warmth. It was dark wherever he was and he felt surrounded by something rough and soft at the same time. All of a sudden, he was brought into bright light and cold. He felt massive hands cradling him. He opened his eyes to blurry bright figures with voices he could barely make out. As he continued to focus both sound and sight came to him. Eventually, he could make out the faces to two people, two gigantic humans. One was an exhausted looking woman with light hair and eyes she looked down at him with exhausted satisfaction and tenderness. The man at her side was dark skinned, with coal black eyes. The man brought Damien closer to his chest, and Damien tried to hold out his arms to push him back, only to his horror discover that his limbs were replaced with stumpy sausage like hands and feet.

_What's going on! _He thought as alarms went off in his head, as he began to focus, to pierce through whatever foggy haze he was in, he found his mind slowly panicking. He tried to speak, but the noises that escaped his mouth were just high-pitched babbling.

"Is he trying to speak already? We have a smart child, our little Faris." The woman sighed contently.

_…__Who…what? _Damien tried to observe his surroundings, but the light beyond the immediate area blinded him, and it was a struggle just to keep his head from falling over. That's when he really began to observe the wrinkled, stubby appendages that wriggled about as he tried to move were his limbs, and that, it wasn't the two who were huge, but rather, in observing the monstrous size of the black cat that observed the couple, it was he, who was small. The woman took Damien into her arms, smiling with such profound joy that Damien smiled back in reflex.

"He's smiling at me Bergan!" The woman laughed out with joy, turning to the man. He smiled, as he did, Damien began to notice his shaven head and large black beard. The man's eyes twinkled and his smile was like a crescent moon in a starless night, to Damien, this was a surreal dream.

_Yeah… this is just a dream,_ He thought, but even as he thought that, his eyes rested on the cat. It was matte black, huge, even if compared to his small form. It had a wild look about it with its top fangs just barely jutting out of its mouth, with eyes that gleamed blue and that seemed to look into him. The room was bathed in light as a door was opened. Through that door a young woman with thick, curly brown hair and bright eyes walked in.

Without a word the brown-haired woman took out a vial, poured its contents into a spoon, and fed it to the woman holding Damien. He looked at her as she grimaced.

"Tut tut," the bright-eyed woman retorted. "You need the medicine to keep your strength, the birth was hard on you and the baby, and it's a miracle you both survived, it's my job to keep that miracle going."

"I understand Angela."

The woman nodded, and extended her hands, letting the man hold Damien again. As he did, Damien saw his reflection, it wasn't him, but a baby, a pruney, pink mess with tufts of hair and bright blue eyes staring back at the mirror. He felt the panic rise through his throat, and without the ability to control himself began to cry. Instead of the quiet sobs he had trained himself to hold to, the screams of an infant, inconsolable and loud.

"He must be hungry." The woman reached out for Damien once again. "Our little Faris…" She began to nurse him, and despite himself, Damien's instincts as a baby took over and he began to suckle, falling into a drowsy stupor. The last thing he saw before drifting off to sleep was a little girl of about 10 or 11 years of age, looking at him with tired violet eyes and a cynical expression.

Chapter 1

A 6-month-old baby boy crawled up and down a bear skin carpet in a well-furnished living room, skillfully carved wood and metal utensils, baubles, and decorations littered the floor and walls, and grand painting of a sunset was set proudly on the fire place, so realistic and intense that a passing glance could leave one believing they were looking out a window. The baby crawled up and down while looking down with an intense look on his face. Anyone watching him would jest that he was waiting for an important meeting, though to their surprise, they'd be right. The baby continued his crawl from one end of the carpet to the other, moving along the edges of the rug in an ovular clockwise fashion, going counter-clockwise whenever the first way made him dizzy. Eventually, he heard what he was looking for, and sat back, moving his head up to see the latch to the windowsill of the room open. Poking his head out from under the window was a young boy with slanted, cat-like eyes and thick shaggy black hair. He was twiddling a piece of holly woven in his hair. The baby blinked, and when he opened his eyes, the boy was gone, though the windowsill left open. The baby smiled, turning to see a large black cat laying down besides him. The baby, Damien, or Faris, leaned back into the cat's side, resting on its warm flank, the child let his mind wander.

_Hello Solembum._ The child projected his mind outwards, willing his thoughts over to the cat, and after what seemed like an eternity, the cat responded, almost seeming to smile as it yawned.

_Hello, human kit._

Faris, or Damien, smiled at this. With Solembum here, it meant that Angela would arrive in a few hours. She always arrived at least once a month to check on them. His mother was still recovering from the birth, and Angela wanted to make sure both Faris and his mother survived. Even then, Angela was Angela, and like he remembered reading, was never one to remain in the same place forever. He only really remembered the first and last times she was around, the moment of his birth and the clarity he had achieved was almost immediately gone, and for months, he moved in a hazy dream, unable to focus his thoughts. Solembum had proven godsend in that situation, he was interested in Damien's memories of his previous life and in all the boy experienced, and taught him a way to memorize everything, down to the most minute detail, perhaps it was due to this early schooling of mastering the mind that allowed Faris to slowly gain clarity, and soon he was able to remember everything, from the names of his friends and family, down to how many misspelled words were in the second book on his left book shelf in his room, which page numbers contained those misspelled words, and how the misspellings could effect the way the story flowed. Thinking to his accomplishments, Faris smiled. A baby's smile was contagious and the faintest of purrs could be heard from Solembum.

_So, what is your plan?_ Solembum queried, he looked at Faris in the eyes, eyes as blue as the midday sky.

The child raised his hands, raising them towards the ceiling in an up-and-down fashion as his mind reflected. The last time Angela had been here, he had tried to project his mind towards her. Not on purpose of course, Solembum had warned him to wait a year or two, but after the time he had spent communicating with Solembum, just as a child easily learns spoken or kinetic language, he learned the language of the mind, and his own voracious curiosity got the better of him, as he communed with birds, rodents, dogs, and other domesticated animals. His young mind was extremely flexible, and his desire to experience more of this new avenue of communication combined with the original intelligence Damien had created a dauntless information seeker. Through surreptitious gleaning of information from passersby, guests, and even some animals, he learned that his parents had come to the village almost three years ago, and that while they were still relatively new, they were recognizable and trusted faces within the village. Curious as to their origins, he tentatively attempted to glean their minds, but to his surprise found that both of them had rock solid mental defenses that they kept up at all times except during sleep. Because of this, Faris resolved to learn more about his parents through asking them when he got older. Faris became somewhat gloomy as he thought about Angela, she had been changing his diaper when his mind brushed against hers by accident. At that time, she became deathly still, and her movements slowed, she finished cleaning him, and after setting him down, a massive wall of mental force came bearing down on his psyche, threatening to kill him as it cut into his mind and drilled ever deeper. No matter what he threw at it, the onslaught did not cease, he felt something within him begin to break, and eventually shatter, shatter in such a way that he felt his mind split, it was only then that Solembum, noticing just too late, bit Angela on the leg, distracting her enough for Faris to break into a wild screaming sob. The pure terror in both minds forced Angela to recoil out of the mind. What followed was his confused parents entering the room, seeing Angela looking distraught and Faris screaming. It took them hours to calm the child down, and days for him to return to normal, by then Angela had left, and whilst she came back the next month, her visit was short and she barely looked at the child. The next month, this month, she was late, late by weeks, so late that Faris had feared she would never return, but Solembum's arrival assuaged that first fear, but his second terror, of what almost happened to him, that made him almost wish she didn't return.

He had by now realized that he was in Alagaesia, he hadn't known how or why, and he hadn't really believed it, but everything, everywhere, everyone, were named as they were in the books he loved, and he could do nothing about this predicament. He somewhat missed his old family, but they weren't close, and he hadn't been too attached to anyone recently, maybe a one-sided crush, but even then, that was overshadowed by the excitement of the world he now lived in. If it made things better, his new family was much closer, and they dearly loved him, and he them, while he couldn't fully recall his past life at the age he was now, he knew his old mother held him twice before he turned one year old, and would never think to breast feed him, despite being so content to do it for his younger sister. Despite life being much harder than the technology filled utopia that was his old world, he found himself comfortable, everyone, despite having to work hard, moved with a purposeful energy, as if shackles had been removed, and in many ways, shackles had been removed. It had been 3 years since Galbatorix was slain. And as if even the land was relieved of the burden of his evil crops had begun to grow in greater abundance and trade had begun to open again between the nations. Meats, fish, and crops like wheat and corn, and produce like milk and eggs were traded for specialty spices, salt, and sugar from Surda, whilst wood furnishing and soft lace was traded for stone and metal workings from the Dwarven kingdom. Taxes had been lowered drastically as there was no war needed to be fought, and great changes had occurred already, schooling was something almost every large village could boast of, with literacy rates reaching 40% amongst the adult population and almost 70% with the children. Magic was more common, not that more people were born with magic, but that it became easier to understand how to access one's magic if they had it. Alongside this greater knowledge came registration, prospective mages would be taken to schooling, either through specialized tutors, or through an academy in the capital, where they learned general magic but also began to focus on branches of understanding. The town had its own mage, a middle-aged balding man who clamed being a member of the original Varden, though not of the Du Vrangr Gata. He endeared himself to the town when he was able to fully heal an elder's broken leg over the span of a month, an injury that not only could have crippled the man for life, but could have even killed if the wound had gotten infected. All government sanctioned mages had a tattoo of a dragon's head on their dominant forearm alongside some script in the ancient language. A feature that Faris noticed on neither of his parents.

_You have been quiet. You are normally more obnoxious than the rider had been._

Faris giggled at that.

_I'm sorry Solembum, I was just wondering about everything again, and what would happen when Angela returned, I'm scared she's going to hate me, or hate my parents by proxy._

A coughing sound emerged from Solembum as he closed his eyes and turned from Faris. Faris at first felt concern. But when he felt not pain or discomfort, but mirth, from Solembum, that concern changed to indignation.

_It isn't funny!_ He exclaimed mentally, frowning. Solembum continued his coughing laugh for a bit, before slowing to a purr and opening one eye, now a bright gold.

_What is it?!_ Faris asked. But Solembum made no comment, merely yawning, stretching, and bounding out the window. The noise must have startled his mother, who came rushing out the kitchen with a rolling pin in one hand and a kitchen knife in her other. She looked to the floor to see her son staring back at her. Smiling in relief she set her tools on a table and cleaned her hands on her apron, picking Faris up.

"Well little Faris, what have you been up to?" She asked, smiling.

Faris smiled back, saying, "Mama!"

This elicited a slight chuckle from his mother, Faris giggled in response, overshadowing any thoughts of the excitement of this world. It may have been a slight exchange, but he truly loved his parents in this world. In Damien's old world, his mother was a politician, who only held him when trying to put up an 'authentic' front, his father was little better, a well-known mystery author and prolific romance novel ghost writer, he was always either busy working or making appearances for book releases, conventions, sales, and talk shows. This left Damien with being acquainted with professional sitters, nannies, and manservants, most of whom resented his parent's cold demeanors and didn't care to hide their animosity from the young child those two brought into the world. He grew up quiet and repressed, learning to hide his emotions from his caretakers, who would only tear down any weaknesses he had, and from his parents, who's indifference to his discomfort would simply break down his psyche. It wasn't until his uncle on his mother's side introduced him to video games, movies, boxing, and martial arts, ways for him to release the feelings of powerlessness, and powerful relievers of stress when the books he'd escape into weren't enough. Suppressing those thoughts Faris focused on his mother, and on his life here. Here in this world, his beautiful mother Haya loved and raised and nurtured him. Here in this world his strong and kind father, Bergan Briarson, was as strong as he was dependable. They weren't rich, but his father, being a metal smith, was never without work, and their family thrived. He could tell that both his parents were well educated, and their love for knowledge resonated with his. Which is why his favorite memory wasn't discovering this world's nature, nor was it seeing that magician heal the elder, witnessing true magic, rather, it was the way they're faces lit up when Faris finally gained the physical control over his vocal cords to say "mama, dada". Faris would then on begin to communicate his love and care for his parents, and his parents would return those feelings. As such, the hurt Damien grew with was further pushed away, and thoughts were focused the now.

Still smiling, Faris's mother Haya carried the boy up the stairs, the rhythm of her footsteps and the beating of her heart lulling him to sleep like a gentle lullaby. Before, he could barely stay awake for 3 hours before falling asleep due to the sheer amount of thoughts running through his head. But now, he could stay up much longer, his body developing quickly as he moved about more and more each day, exercising his mind and body with his adventures over the bear skin rug. Even with his strength growing little by little each day, his mother's heartbeat was all that was needed to fall asleep. As he began to drift off, Damien began to think about what he knew, by trading memories and thoughts and experiences with Solembum, he had learned a few words in the ancient language, this combined with what he already remembered, allowed him to weave his first spell, the spell to remember, a spell that after seeming to only drain a little of his magic did its wonders. The ancient language, as odd a language as it was, he conquered the little he knew. As Haya put down her baby to rest for the afternoon, Damien dreamed of the future.


	2. Chapter 2

Haya was surprised when Angela returned, Faris had woken up, fussy and crying and needing to be changed, Angela had knocked on the door, and as Faris was still mid change Angela burst in, looking as bouncy and bubbly as she ever could. As she walked in, she was followed by Elva and Solembum. Solembum looked up at Faris and his compromised position, Faris scowled at the cat's smile and turned away. Solembum merely sat, tail twitching, before yawning and stretching out.

"Angela!" Haya began, excited as she finished changing Faris's lines. She scrubbed her hands in a pail of soapy water, and after drying them she ran over to the herbalist, hugging her. Angela returned the gesture with enthusiasm.

"Oh Haya, its good to see you too!" Angela said. She held Haya at arm's length, looking her up and down with a warm smile. At the end of her appraisal the herbalist laughed, "It seems you've lost that belly fat you gained, I'm surprised, I was expecting you to get even more now that you were a mother."

Haya for her part mock gasped. "I would have given how much Bergan demands on the table sometimes." She and Angela laughed, she continued, "I swear, I'll never understand how he puts everything down and yet still keeps his figure. Perhaps it's all the work in that smithy of his. Even then, the housework keeps me busy, and he's a dear and sweeps often. Perhaps to try and apologize to me whenever he hosts those monthly parties, those villagers are warm and kind, but our pantries are raided once a month."

Angela chuckled, "he still holds those parties? I've told him to stop, soon there'll be too many mouths and not enough mead."

As their small talk continued, Solembum approached Faris, who's mother had set on a cushioned chair.

_Hello human kit._

_Hello Solembum._ Faris responded.

Faris knew it would take a while before their small talk concluded, so he focused his attention to Solembum, who's eyes now flashed bright green.

_What colors can your eyes change into?_

_Many._

This was a game he'd end up playing with Solembum, he'd ask questions, either in plain English or in the Ancient Language, Solembum would often give only one-word answers, but often times they were words Damien never learned in the ancient language.

_Where did you guy go for this month?_

_Places._

_Can you say more than two words?_

_Yes._

_Will you?_

_No._

After a bit of hesitation, he asked.

_…__How is Elva?_

Of the characters in the series that resonated with Damien, Elva's was the most compelling story. She hadn't chosen to be born, nor had she chosen her abilities. They were a curse foisted on her by accident. He knew she most likely didn't like or trust him as she knew all his fears, but she never made comment of it. Interestingly, she hadn't been with Angela on the day that Faris had accidentally brushed against Angela's mind, and Damien often wondered what would have changed. Solembum normally responded to Faris's questions about Elva with an odd stare, but today he responded differently.

_She wishes to speak to you, but only after you speak to Angela._

Damien was surprised at that, but excitedly looked forward to meeting Angela. After some more small talk Angela finally approached Faris as Faris's mother went to the kitchen to procure refreshments. She looked at the boy sitting on the couch and looked at him with impassive eyes, scaring Faris. Keeping himself from breaking down, Damien looked at her with resolute eyes, even as they threatened to unleash a broken dam of tears. Faris almost recoiled as he felt a mind brush against his, this mind had almost killed him once before, so it was odd feeling it so… passive, so calm. Damien remembered reading how different race's minds sounded different, how elves seemed to play a deep music, but if he was to describe Angela's mind's music, it was the sound of data streams in fictional movies and shows. The music, if it could be called that, was both discordant and harmonic, playing to an ever more complex tune that both completed its grand epic of a piece yet never went past the first stanza, it was a song that Damien almost was lost in.

_Do you wish to be called Faris, or Damien?_ She asked him.

Faris, projected mental voice out, _Faris_. A slightly different tone echoed out from him, _Faris… umm… Angela-svit-kona!_

Damien's excitement curbed as Angela furrowed her brow.

_How do you know the ancient language, who are you? What did you do to the child?_

Faris held back his panic, but before he could speak, Angela continued.

_I felt a foreign presence in the child's mind, and I meant to tear and destroy it, but it's too deeply intwined, what, did you…_

Damien's mind raced as he found the words in the ancient language.

_Eka… ero… aí eddyr a_í, _edtha. I am me. I am Faris. Please... search my memories._

Angela paused for a moment, face inscrutable before closing her eyes. The child felt the same presence again, though much more intense fashion. She began to comb through Damien's memories. Faris barely held in his discomfort as everything within and without him was moved through and examined, from his most mundane memories and experiences to his innermost thoughts and even darkest desires. As Angela combed through his mind, she became less agitated and more interested.

_So, another world! Master Tenga always assumed one such world existed, that every idea and concept could be a world on its own! This is stupendous, and the world you belonged to! It was amazing, there is no magic yes, but the ability to harness natural resources in such a way that surpasses even the elves' prowess and technology?! It's even more amazing than what the riders had been able to amass and the continuation under the mad king's rule! Its-_

She noticed their discomfort, and released the boy's mind. Calming down, Angela cleared her throat in reality. "Interesting." She turned to see Haya, who was carrying a saucer and balanced a pitcher of milk and three cups, to her side was Bergan, sweating from his hard work at the forge. He looked at Angela, smiling.

"It's nice to see you again, when you didn't come at the appointed time, we were a little worried." Angela smiled lightly, but got to business.

"I believe your son has talent in magic Haya, Bergan."

Bergan smiled at that, hugging his wife in excitement, picking her up. "Isn't this great Haya! I knew he'd inherit it from…" He paused as he saw his wife's face, as opposed to excitement, she was simply shocked.

"Haya?" Bergan began, setting her down. "I understand your concerns, but you don't have to worry, magic users are well treated, they wouldn't d-"

Bergan, you know what would happen, what the Broddring Kingdom would do, we've hidden from them for far too long. You remember what happened to Sarrox, when he surrendered himself, he was killed before he reached the capital. And they 'claim' they can't find out who killed him."

Bergan looked conflicted, "Even so, do you want him to be left to the lot of a farmer or blacksmith?"

"You're a blacksmith Bergan! At the least he wouldn't have to be involved with… with any danger!"

"The war is over Haya." Bergan soothingly said, hugging his wife. "As long as they don't learn about it, it will be fine."

"Fine?! How?!" Haya demanded, "You remember when Venka was tested! Aina and Jean were nearly interrogated, and then they were tested like crazy, we almost had to leave because of the activity in the village!" Angela raised her hand.

"You won't have to worry about that, I'll see to him."

Damien felt giddy, Angela was the most powerful non rider spell caster he could think of, not because of her power or magical capacity, but because of her intellect, force of will, mental prowess, and ability to understand the rules of magic to such a point that he was left thinking if there was any being that could actually defeat him.

Bergan's frown changed to a cheeky grin. "Oh? I thought you didn't take apprentices, that you didn't want to deal with lopsided brats with as much sense as a fruit fly in a bat cave."

Angela grinned: "Oh no I don't but I'll make an exception for one, seeing as how you both turned out without my expert tutelage."

Bergan smiled sheepishly; Haya's expression broke into a smile before trying to hide it with a straight face.

How did she know them? Faris thought, adding to his ever-increasing pile of questions.

"Besides" Angela continued. "Faris is a smart boy, he'll catch on quickly, I'll take him now and-"

"Wait, now!?" Haya began almost hysterically, "he's a smart child yes, but he's barely six moons!"

"Six and a half actually," Angela began

"Semantics don't matter! He's just a boy!"

Angela raised her hands up, "You know they begin sensing children's minds at around 1-years-old for magic right? No matter how minor his power, they'll sense his ability to connect to that space beneath the sea of his mind. If I don't teach him now, he won't be able to mask it from them. Late bloomers are a common thing, so even after he skips detection, I can then teach him more thoroughly, and it will be believed that he simply awoke the capacity at a later date."

Bergan seemed to waver, but Haya still looked hesitant.

_You_. Faris entered his mind, and searched for the presence that was both him and not him.

_Yeah…_ Damien responded. When Angela had first encountered the child's mind, the portion that was Damien's memories and personality hadn't yet seemed to fully integrate with the overall psyche, in fear and determination, she attempted to rip this supposed foreign presence out of Faris, but found out just too late that this essence was as much a part of Faris as it was of it, which one was the true entity, and which one was false, she didn't know, but she had in error created this mess, and part of those 6 months would be fixing them.

_I want the words to let them let us go._

_What?_ Damien sounded out, confusion emanating from him, _but you want to stay, if anything I'd be the one who wants to go, even if it would make mom and dad sad._

_They aren't your mom and dad! They're mine!_

Damien seemed to shrink within the child's mind, the majority of force was put on his psyche, as Angela's goal had been to shatter and destroy the collection of memories and the seemingly alien presence, while Faris's mind was damaged slightly, the part that could be called Damien received the brunt, and was the weaker of the two. _…Fine, I mean, it wasn't until Angela struck us that we became like this. But fine… you want those words._

Faris looked up at his parents, "Mama, Dada, am I getting you in trouble? If I am, and Angie can help, let her please, I don't want you to get in trouble." Faris began to cry a bit, whether they were just from his grief at the thought of being separated from his parents, or from Damien's grief of the same thing. Haya picked up her child, consoling him, before turning to Angela once again.

"We can't just abandon our child over fear like that, if we do, we'll be worse villains than Galbatorix ever had been!" Haya crosses her arms, "Besides! He'll cry if anyone other than me and his father picks him up!"

"Really now…" Angela picked up Faris, who looked at her, then back at his parents. An awkward silence filled the room.

"I still can't let my son go like that, I'd rather be poisoned and hung than leave him, he's all we have."

Angela laughed, "Who said anything about abandoning him? As long as you have a suitable mirror, I can scry you every month."

"Every fortnight." Haya interjected.

"Oh, so you agree?" Angela smiled.

"N-no! I was just-" Bergan interrupts Haya. "Honey, it's for the best, Faris won't forget about us, and it's for his protection. Besides, he's smart, you know it too."

Haya looked conflicted, lip trembling a bit. "Scry us every day."

"Every week, I literally won't have the time to do so every day, but I will make sure it's at the same time, same day, every week unless you choose to reschedule, which you'll have to tell me."

Haya still looked like she would argue. That was when Elva spoke up. "You both know Angela is a powerful spellcaster and regarded as legend to the Varden, Nasuada, and Du Vrangr Gata. Even if they find us on our travels the herbalist Angela, the witch-child Elva, a werecat, and a baby are unlikely to be stopped. And you can just tell the villagers that the child is sick, most of them already know of Angela as only a good healer and so the fact that you don't show your child and that Angela continues to come back once a month won't arouse too much suspicion."

"…. Please give me time then."

Angela nodded, she, Solembum and Elva left the room. Once they were out of earshot Haya grabbed unto Faris, sobbing deeply as she held him. Bergan held on to both of them, his hot tears soaking his grand beard. Faris began tearing up himself. He could feel that the arguments were tenuous at best, and that what he was doing was wrong, he didn't want to leave, but he so much wanted to learn magic, to become a part of this world, and to protect his family. He wanted it so bad that even as he cried with his parents, he couldn't help but think about what he could do with his magic. His own selfishness tore into him even more and he began to sob in true earnest, saying "sorry! Sorry!" repeatedly as he hugged his mother tightly, the sparks of self-loathing directing themselves to Damien, who could only shrink inwards, hiding his emotions from Faris. Their combined cries falling into the night.


	3. Chapter 3

Faris's mother fussed over him as she packed a tiny bag. Angela waited patiently, watching with slight awe as Haya managed to gather and stuff a smorgasbord of baby toys, knickknacks, blankets, and comfort foods.

"Impressive." The herbalist said as she proceeded to dup everything except for a change in clothing, a few blankets, and a sheepskin bottle with a pin pricked nozzle in the shape of a teat. As for Faris's Father's 'gifts' Angela simply left the bag. Bergan, bless his heart, had packed things that he considered would be important for a young man to have as he faced the world.

"These are all treasures for a young man."

Angela critically glared at the "treasures for a young man." The long sword, pick axe, and bow all more than twice Faris's size, the arrows, caltrops, and rope any normal baby would more likely choke on than use for survival.

She looked at Bergan, "Well, not all of these are useless." She picked up a compass, surprised at how good a shape it was in, a spy glass, a wine skin, and some assorted herbs referred to as Forza Grass. "Ah yes, Forza grass, you know, it's a common misconception that this is good for a man's stamina, which is false, it's actually quite beneficial otherwise though, it makes great stool softener."

Faris couldn't help but laugh at the way his father's face twisted.

With the supplies packed, Haya and Began hugged their son one more time before Angela tied him to her back with a blanket to free her hands. As they began to leave, Faris yelled out, "See you soon!". Hi parents smiled and waved, his mother sobbing out, "See you soon! We love you!" They looked at each other as Angela made her way forward in the darkness of the night, the dim glow of the full moon being the only thing illuminating their trek. Faris couldn't see them any longer, but he knew that just like he was doing, his parents were probably staring back at his direction.

_…__Can we talk?_

_NO!_ Faris announced quickly, shunning Damien further into his mind.

_Is the human kit fighting itself?_ Solembum asked.

_No! Yes… No! I'm not fighting myself; I'm fighting…_

_Myself, yeah._ Damien retorted. _Hello Solembum…_

_Hello human kit._ Solembum yawned once. _What ails you?_

Faris was silent, Damien answered, _He doesn't know which one is real._

_Which one?_

_Before, there was just Faris, who happened to also have Damien's memories, if anything, the thought process is that I died back on earth, then I was born here, my new birth parents named me Faris. But when I accidentally brushed minds with Angela, she attacked without regard, wanting to kill me, but not Faris. So… now I don't know, and he doesn't know either, was a regular baby known with no real memories born, and is the collection of memories and spirit known as Damien just a ghost, or parasite of some sort that tried to take over and get rid of whatever innocent life would have existed? Or was it a true reincarnation, but memories were kept, and Damien was reborn as Faris, if the second is true…_

Elva continued, "Rather than the entity known as Damien, who's already died, being an add on, the collection of memories that creates the 6-month-old baby known as Faris Fadawar Ser is just that, a collection of memories foolishly ripped away from the true soul, either way, spark of thought that allows each of you to think on an individualistic level will leave eventually, and you fear that one of you will cease to exist."

_Confusing, and annoying._ Solembum declared.

"Imagine if a Dragon and it's Rider were just bonded, but where then told that one of them would disappear, and their memories would be given to the other while the first ceased." Angela spoke quietly. "This is… my mistake, and my sin, so I will try to rectify this, and training you for these 6 months will be the first step."

Faris nods. "…I understand."

They had been walking for a few hours when Angela called for a break, setting the camping gear just as the day began to break. She took out a metal bowl and filled it with water she gathered from a stream. She began to heat it quickly with a prepared fire, she took a large helping of oats, a few herbs, some salt, and a sweet-smelling brown sugar like substance.

"They call it sweet cane" Angela said, as if reading his thoughts. "It comes from Du Weldenvarden, the elves cultivate these hard reed-like plants that resemble green staffs with jointed, even notches. The plant's sap is naturally sweeter than most other plants, but boiling it till there's no water left leaves this sweet brown powder-like substance that the elves scrape out of the original plant. It's very thick and concentrated and when mixed with water makes a very very sweet milk-like liquid. It's extremely popular in Palancar and Ilirea, which I'm sure you know was formally Urûbaen." Faris nodded absentmindedly, holding his blanket. Damien was in silence, using as much control as he was afforded to listen. Learning more things about the world was important to him, but he was distracted with thoughts of whether it was the right choice to leave his home.

_It's just, did I make the right decision? I feel like I'm just like the parents I once had, valuing what I want over family._

Angela took out a pipe, she didn't light it but left it in her mouth her teeth on the handle. "I wouldn't know, the future is never fully set in stone, you being there may have resulted in capture, you not being there may result in capture, you just have better chances this way. You know though, you can speak normally, you don't have to project with your mind.

Faris didn't answer at first, when he did, the high-pitched voice of a child, much higher and more song like than what was projected by his thoughts rang out. "Ok"

Solembum began to laugh again, Angela, who hadn't been prepared for a child trying to speak the common tongue in such a proper way began to burst out laughing, even Elva, who had not said anything smiled slightly. Faris's face grew hot and he tried to stand up from his sitting position, only to fall and lean into his face. The laughter grew louder.

"That's not funny!" He screeched, sounding even more reedy and child-like. This doubled the effectiveness of their laughter. He pouted and sat, looking away from them.

"Aw, wait!" Angela began, huffing to calm herself down. "I'm sorry… I just thought you'd be like Elva over here, a voice a bit too old for her body."

Faris shrugged and still didn't turn.

_Well I'm not! Ok?!_

_It's not that bad._ Damien reassured him.

_You shut up!_

"Your voice is appropriate for a child your age, the fact you trained your vocal cords to speak is good. Besides, you likely know it's safer to speak out loud, leaving your mind open makes you a target for creatures and spellcasters." Elva says.

Faris calmed down a bit. "Thanks" he chirped out.

Damien grumbles, _so I'm ignored huh…_

Elva nods and returns to gazing at the bowl, the contents of which had by now finished simmering and mixing under Angela's watchful gaze. She mixed a few sprinkles of sweet cane into the concoction and poured good helpings into each bowl, giving a smaller one for Faris that was lined with cottage cheese, she began to spoon feed him the meal, which he devoured with gusto. After finishing his meal, he became drowsy.

"Confound this tiny body!" He muttered as he leaned to his side.

Angela snorted in amusement, which he had to chuckle to, his voice sounded like he was breathing helium, it was alien to him and he almost wouldn't recognize it as his own if not for the fact his mouth was opening each time. She prepared a thick blanket and wrapped him in it, then muttered some words in the ancient language. "There, now man, beast, and insect alike will avoid approaching us." Faris nodded his thanks drowsily as he drifted off to sleep.

He awoke with a bit of a start and realized there was a pair of violet eyes staring at him in the gloom.

_Elva?_ He queried, wondering what she wished to speak about, he had wanted to speak to her before but she had refused to answer any questions he asked and only spoke a few times.

_Yes, Damien now Faris? Son of four? Reborn one?_

_I'm not Damien._ Faris declared.

_Fine, but it is he I wish to speak to._

_What?! But Solembum said!_ Faris scowled, loosening his hold on Damien, who's mind reached out to Elva's.

_You said… Solembum said you wished to speak to me?_

He observed as the violet disappeared, he blinked a few times, but realized she had closed her eyes.

_I am curious, in your world, our world, our tail, our struggles, it is a book. What is the maker like?_

Damien racked his brains. _I never met him, but he seemed like a very interesting person. I remember that he was 16 when he first published the first book Eragon._

_Are all adolescents so cruel in your world?_

Damien's mind shrunk a bit, _what do you mean?_

Elva was quiet for a time, as if she was trying to gather the right words together_. I meant, so cruel as to create me, to have a child shoulder my burden. You feel pity for me, but you do not fear me, are cases like mine so common that all you can feel is… "oh well?"_

Damien could not hide his embarrassment and shame over that_. But you are real! I don't think he would have written things the way they were if he knew real people were suffering, I'm sure he was just writing a work of fiction for himself and others to enjoy._

_You mean people enjoy reading the book of desperate haggard disillusioned men and women fighting to defeat an evil almost all-powerful king who took nearly everything away from them? A story of races wiped out, genocides carried out, and an almost all-powerful evil?_

_Wait!_ Damien began. _But you guys won!_

_So, you just enjoyed the ride, you were happy with watching the story progress because there was a "happy" ending? Like some unattached gods looking on. You cried I see reading the deaths of Ajihad, Hrothgar, and Oromis and Glaedr the most, but you didn't shed a tear for the hundreds who died attempting to defeat Lord Barst, nor of Queen Islanzadí Dröttning who he smote with his mace, nor of the countless men and women who died before that, nor of the elves who guarded Eragon and died in his invasion of Helgrind and the invasion of Urûbaen. You didn't cry in the battle of Farden Dur, where I felt the deaths of thousands of men and Kulls and the anguish of those left when they burned and buried the bodies._

Elva's mind voice seemed to raise in volume in his head, and even if he wanted to Damien did not block communication.

_And of me? You didn't cry for me, you felt shock I gave up on the Varden when I became free, upset with Angela for being rightfully angry at Eragon for blundering a second time, and glad that I agreed to come back and experience more pain just so Galbatorix could be defeated. You felt more pity for that murderer Sloan than you could spare for me._

Damien flinched at that.

_Which then leads to again, why don't you fear me? You obviously know I know how to say things that can hurt you, and I know your fears and pain through Eragon's spell so…_

Damien did not answer, he didn't need to answer.

_You are hiding something you don't want me to know, but you haven't fully understood what it is yourself… you…_

She began to burst into laughter, but before she could continue, Faris's voice rang out.

_You aren't being fair you know; how many folktales are there in this world? Do you think that it's just his world that's special, any book or story could have its own world behind it, any folktale, tragedy, and monster story could have a truth, aren't you being unfair?! It's because he didn't know that he could enjoy the story, no one likes a happy ending if there wasn't a struggle._

"Maybe I like happy endings without struggles!" Elva shouted, "At least those are quiet! Your prattle about which one of you is real annoys me to no end!"

An annoyed Angela threw her blanket at Elva's face.

"Go gossip like bored house wives somewhere else, I'm trying to sleep!"

Elva looked like she was going to say something else, thought better of it, and returned to her bed.

As Faris went back to bed, he heard Damien.

_Thank you… but why did you help me?_

_I don't know, _Faris began, _it made me mad, you make me a bit madder though._

_…__Sorry. _Damien's voice was quiet, but it contained a slightly hopeful energy.


	4. Chapter 4

"First things first, you need to learn how to hide your mind." Angela had given them all lunch before settling down to teach Faris.

"Hide my mind?" Faris asked, "You mean defend it?"

"No, hide your mind, erase your existence, pretend as if you aren't actually in the area."

"How would I do that?" He inquired.

"You slowly reduce your thoughts, but also don't focus on anything, move yourself into a barely conscious state." Angela gazed forward, eyes glazing over for a few seconds. "Reach out to my mind.

Faris did, and to his surprise, felt nothing as he sent his conciousness out, he stretched it as far as he could, moving throughout Angela's area, he couldn't find her, fed up, he crawled over, touching the hem of her skirt to find that she wasn't an apparition. "…How…"

"It requires a different stimulus for different beings, but once you find the correct emotional impetus, it's easy to empty and hide your mind. I want you to try now."

Faris began quieting his thoughts, but as he tried emptying his mind, he began having flashes of horrible thoughts, horrible feelings of anger and inadequacy that pulled him out of his waking thoughts. "What was that!"

"That was very impressive." Angela began, "You emptied your mind of surface thoughts, which allowed you to begin contemplating the inner thoughts, thoughts and feelings that are more dreamlike in appearance, you'll have to empty those too, which will be a much harder endeavor than what you went through to empty your surface thoughts."

Faris kept at it for 5 more hours, the only reason he stopped was because it was time to scry his parents. He almost scowled, as he felt he almost reached it, but the excitement of seeing his parents made him quickly crawl over to the basin of water Angela set up.

"…Hi honey!" His eyes widened in excitement as he saw his smiling mother and father.

"Mom! Dad!" He smiled.

"Are you eating enough! Are you drinking enough milk! Angela! You bathe him, regularly right?!"

"It's only been 12 hours Haya." Angela lightly remarked.

"12 hours too long!" Haya declared. Faris giggled at that, which caused his mother to smile, then she frowned. "Honey? Is something the matter?"

"No? I'm doing good mom." Faris continued.

"No, there's something wrong, you seem a little sad baby."

Faris was about to reassure her, when he felt Damien. "Oh no mom! I must just be tired; I haven't had nap time yet."

"Oh!" Haya glared at Angela crossly, "Let him sleep!" Bergan only smiled and shook his head. As the connection cut out, Faris entered his mind.

_What's wrong with you! Don't interrupt my time with my mom and dad!_

_They're my mom and dad too! Like it or not I'm part of you!_ Damien retorted, his grief flooding through their psyche.

_NO, THEY AREN'T! _Faris's mind seemed to rear up like a tidal wave, smashing down on Damien the same way Angela had done, Damien, with no recourse, could only curl up like a ball, focusing everything to a single point. Faris continued his onslaught until mental exhausting took him. As he lost focus it seemed as if Damien slipped out of existence.

"Oho… good job." Angela said suddenly, "Part of your mind is slipping out of you, pretty soon you'll be able to master it."

"But… It wasn't." Faris began.

"Technically it was." Elva continued, "You made him feel small, and, well he's surpassed you in the lesson, isn't that funny?"

Faris scowled, and redoubled his efforts, but even after a month, he couldn't hide himself.

"Why can't I do it?!" He yelled two days before his 7th month of being born.

"It may be because your mind is in disarray, though it is likely going to take a bit longer, you aren't too slow."

Faris was cross, to make matters worse, he couldn't feel Damien, while he hated the latter's presence, he had been intwined with him long enough that him missing was uncomfortable. The worst part was that alongside Damien's disappearance was his memories. What Faris could recall with pinpoint accuracy became hazy, and with his young mind, he could feel his psyche begin to slip and regress to a younger age. It was slow enough that Angela didn't notice yet, and if Elva knew, she hadn't brought it up.

"I need to learn it soon." Faris was only really interested in learning how to hide, if he could, he wouldn't need to learn anything else from Angela, and he could return to his parents, he thought her lessons were dumb and stupid anyway, and that she was probably a bad teacher.

"That seems a little selfish, then again, given your age, that makes sense."

"What's that supposed to mean!?" Faris yelled.

Elva simply smirked. "I learned that trick in a week, Angela in three day, and it took Solembum the better part of half a day to get it down pat. But it's taken you a month, and you still don't have a clue, the one you think is fake is better than you are. Which tells me who the real fake is."

"Elva!" Angela flicked Elva on the forehead, but the damage was done.

Faris felt angry, but as his emotions got the better of him, hot tears fell down his face. Faris the boy who inherited the memories of a teen from earth was replaced with Faris the 7-month-old baby having a tantrum. As he cried himself out, he sat there, in silence. Eventually, he could feel something within himself. As he reached towards it, he realized it was Damien, still curled up, dead to the outside world.

_How! How did you do that?!_ Faris demanded.

_Why do you care? you said you want nothing to do with me._

_You!_ Faris attempted to strike at Damien, but he found that he couldn't even reach him. _Come out! Face me! Coward! Idiot! I hate you!_

_NO!_ Damien retreated further inwards, and Faris was threatened with the prospect of loosing sight of him once again, and if he did, he feared he wouldn't be able to learn how to hide his presence.

_Wait! Come on! At least! Teach me how you do it!_ Even as he cried out, he felt his competency degenerating, his mind was physically undeveloped, so without whatever force allowed him to have Damien's memories, the information he had learned was slowly seeping out. He might slowly recall them later, when he was old enough to retain the complex information, _but it will be too late by then!_ He screamed inside his mind, eventually quieting down as despair seemed to fill him. _I… I actually need you…_ As he lay there, silent, a familiar voice echoed back.

_…__That feeling, that despair. That's what you need to disappear like that._

Faris looked up, in his mind, his toddler form looked at the teen with the sad face.

The teen continued, _that's right, that's how we hide, imagine yourself sadder than you've ever been, that you're insignificant and worthy of neither love nor respect from others. That feeling, you realize it now, that hating me is the same as hating yourself._

_…__Is that how you disappeared? By hating yourself?_ Faris continued.

_No, because eventually you reach a point where you simply disappear, where once you've reached that bottom, you simply spill everything out, exhale without inhaling, then hold your breath forever._

_Let me see._ Faris begged. He reached his small hand out to Damien, who took it, sharing his memories and the feeling. _Oh… I'm so sorry…_

Faris opened his eyes, tears streaming down.

Angela paused, then turned to look at Faris, she smiled grimly, "You've done it."

Faris looked up at her, "We're sorry Angela-Svit-Kona, I was failing you, and failing myself. We're ready to learn…"

Like that, 4 more months past without too much incident.

"Purple eyed-asshole"

"Frequent Shitter."

The only real incident was Faris's rock bottom relationship with Elva, which seemed to devolve the longer they spent time together.

"How much longer are you going to wallow in your ridiculous self-pity."

Faris scoffed, "Well how about you stop bullying my people."

"The fact a barely 11-month-old baby has to be the rock for a 16-year-old boy in order to defend himself from an 11-year-old girl is more than a little sad, wouldn't you think? Then again, it's not like Damien was ever a proactive person, a yes-man all his life, and the two times he changed his mind, well we know the second time killed him."

Angela smacked the back of Elva's head, "That's enough of that for today."

_Darn her!_ Faris stewed as he slurped down Angela's rabbit stew. He had mastered hiding his presence, and had moved on to learning the ancient language and mental training, both in attacking and defending, while by no means a master he was quickly becoming proficient.

_It's okay._ Damien attempted to soothe him.

_No, it's not, she doesn't respect us at all, and Angela won't do anything to help, Solembum never steps in, and all you do is just sit there all quiet!_ He calmed down as he felt Damien shrink in somewhat, then exploded again. _First of all! What's wrong with you!? Why are you such a coward?! What?! Scared to fight her because of what you know about her power? It's not like whatever she says or does bears any real meaning, Angela's already perused your memories and Solembum taught us how to memorize them, so he'd know most of them anyway!_

_Even so, she might say it in a way we can't handle. And… I'm a little scared._

Faris sighed in exasperation.

_What bothers you now human kit? Are you having a spat with your littermate?_

_Solembum, would have been nice if you assisted me._

_Oh, but I've known her longer, even if you're interesting I can't pick you over her, now can I?_

Faris swore but Damien piped up, _erm… Solembum._

_Yes?_ The cat asked with its deep gold eyes.

_Do you know the spell Angela used to keep Elva from hearing her fears?_

_Yes._

_Could you tell it to us?_

_I could, but I won't._

Faris blinked at his multiple word answer. "Okay, fine I guess."

_Don't do anything stupid._

Faris merely smiled. Later that night, just before Angela went to bed, she heard Elva shout. Getting up she saw the spark of magic wrapping around Faris, reaching out her mind she gave him stamina, joining her mind with Elva's and Solembum's to provide enough magic. After a few tense seconds Angela marched up to the child, who was too weak to even get out of bed.

"What in the blazes did you do?!"

Faris merely smiled, "Ask Elva…"

Angela turned to Elva, who shook her head, "That idiot… he… cast a spell."

Angela nearly fell over, "What?! Faris?! But how? While you have your strong mental capacity, I haven't taught you how to feel magic yet…"

"Its… it's because of Damien, when you… tried to destroy him… well, that part that makes him was pushed back to the same part of me that I reach into to wield magic." He smirks at Elva, "It was his idea to cast this spell anyway."

Angela turned to Elva, who was rocking back and forth a bit. "Elva?! What's wrong?" She grabbed the girl as she saw tears fall down her face.

"I can't feel his pain anymore, I, I can feel…" Elva cries.

"She can feel the pure unadulterated joy a child experiences with its parents, with its friends, that a teen experiences when accomplishing something, the euphoric high of finishing a long run, or getting a great grade, every positive aspect of my lives, so far, and she'll continue to feel it when she's near me." Faris sighed, "I didn't think it would kill me, and Damien let what she said about him enjoying the suffering of others get to him, and to me."

Angela said a few words in the ancient language, causing Elva to faint. Afterwards she leaned down over Faris, who flinched in fear.

"That was stupid, but also ingenious, and… kind of you."

"Huh?" _Huh?!_ Faris and Damien said in unison.

"This was, a test on my part, for the week it would take us to travel back to your home, Elva was to subject you to various levels of discomfort verbally and mentally. I would have considered it a passing grade if you had endured, but I would have passed you if you had fought and won an actual argument, as I believed if you gained the mental fortitude to face your flaws whilst you were still young and still had the wits to fight back, you'd become an outstanding mental duelist, but you surpassed my expectations, in the oddest way too."

"I still don't fully follow, but that means you knew it was bothering me!" Faris yelled.

Angela gave an apologetic smile. "I had to, if this much cracked you, then you wouldn't be prepared for the worst-case scenarios that life throws at you. As it was, you used magic, but not only to hide your fears from her, which not even Galbatorix with all his wards could do, but to do what not even Eragon could do, and let her experience joy. I had to put her to sleep because the euphoric vigor you made her experience half had me fearing she was about to pounce on you and accidentally squeeze you to death. Like a pimple."

Faris paled at that. "Oh, hahaha, oh my god…"

"You not only defended yourself, but you even had the time to extend her such kindness, with her being so cruel to your insecurities, what made you decide to extend this kindness?"

Faris closed his eyes, "Again, it was Damien, but I did agree to help. I didn't like her hurting me, but…" He opened them, looking resolute. "I was doing the same to Damien alone, yet he didn't lash out at me, and he even helped me, so… I thought it would be bad if I was hypocritical."

"That's some major philosophizing from someone not even 1 year old." Angela smiled.

"Don't dragons mature, like way faster?" Faris retorted, "It takes about a year for them to reach mating age/adult hood, when they can breathe fire."

"In that regard, you never did reach adult hood." Angela's smile turned sad.

"Well, we've got this time around to make it, and I'm feeling optimistic."

Angela glanced down at Elva, who slept with an uncharacteristic smile on her face. "…Yes, I can feel optimistic as well…"


	5. Chapter 5

"Hmmm… it looks like your son doesn't have a talent for magic." The court mage sadly handed Faris over to Bergan, who smiled apologetically.

"Aww… well it's okay, he's still going to grow up as strong as his papa and as smart as his mama. Aren't ya little Faris?" He lifted his child up in the air, who giggled.

"Higher dad!" The two laughed a bit. The court mage smiled at the scene, happy that the parents weren't too disappointed. He looked around, most of the other parents, while not outright upset, weren't exactly happy.

Faris's laughter came from two places, first, he genuinely enjoyed being lifted up and down by his dad, the euphoric feeling of flight and the stable hands of his father made him feel safe and strong. Though as for the second reason.

_Yeesh, poor fellow, did you know that Ulrod Masonson yelled at him to recheck his son?!_

_Yeah,_ Faris replied to Damien, _I heard the fifteenth time you told me, in fact, we heard it happen across the town._

Not all the parents took the news that their children could never learn magic well. Court mages were technically minor nobles, and even the lowest of their order tended to make quite a bit of money without having to put in much physical effort. The town's healer made enough from the state that he didn't need to charge for healing, yet could still afford going to the bar every night and covering everyone's tab once a week. Such a well-paying position would put any parent on edge, some adults even trying the test themselves.

"Hahaha, it's a sad thing that we did not discover it today, but he may just be a late bloomer. Let's give it another five years before testing, now, family name?"

Bergan smiled, "Yes, Fadawar-Ser"

"Fadawar… sir?" The mage asked, a little confused.

"No, s-e-r. The Surdan desert tribes often combine the family names of the two who marry, my wife and I chose to follow that tradition. The name comes from my Uncle and family patriarch, though I haven't seen him in years."

"Right…" The mage continued, "Well… anyways, it was nice to meet you, someone will check on your son and on the other villagers' children who we didn't detect magic on in five years."

Faris's parents waived them off before breathing a sigh of relief.

"Well, it looked like they didn't find anything weird. Good job Faris!" Bergan extended one hand, Faris high-fived it, smiling.

Their family together time was interrupted by a knock on the door, as Haya opened the door her smile brightened. "Aina! Jean! It is good to see you!"

She hugged the red-haired woman and brown-haired man, letting them into the house. Faris's smile strained as he looked at them, and he put his head to his father's chest to hide his scowl.

"Hahaha!" Bergan's booming voice reverberated around the room, "Jean, you look as strong as ever, Aina, you look lovely too!"

"We came to say hello, and check on the lucky baby!" Aina winked.

"Ah… about that…" Haya shrugged in mock sorrow, "It looks like he didn't pass."

The couple's shocked gasps were enough for Faris to want to turn to look at their flabbergasted faces, when a pair of green eyes met his, he turned away again.

_Great… they're here…_

"Wow… I'm so sorry."

"Don't be at all." Bergan smiles, "Our Faris is still a smart boy, he knows so many words and can even do simple math, who knows, he might become a statesman or an official for the kingdom, he's certainly smart enough."

Jean smiled, "True, but he'll probably never reach our daughter's level." He smiled widely.

Bergan was all smiles as he replied, "So, how's the potty training going?"

Jean's smile faltered, which caused Bergan the two ladies to laugh at his expense. "It's not that funny!" He sputtered.

"Well, it is for me, I don't have to change her this week." Aina laughed. Jean finally smiled gracefully, looking to Faris.

"Well, you've got that going for you, chin up, in 5 years they'll check you again, though by then my Venka will be up there too."

Faris kept himself from rolling his eyes as he smiled at the man and his pudgy three-year-old daughter.

Venka, as was the girl's name, smiled back at him with a wicked gleam in her eye. "Play!" She announced.

"What a great idea!" Haya turned to Faris, Play nice alright?"

Faris felt like screaming even as he nodded.

_I used to baby sit so we can do this._ Damien announced with confidence.

Fifteen minutes into the play session Damien continually screamed in Faris's mind. _We can't do this! Abort mission! Run! Get help!_

There was little Faris could do, Venka was bigger than him, and therefore stronger, whilst he struggled, she had already dressed him in her doll's clothing and stuck a bonnet on his head.

"Unhand me you fiend! You red-haired troll! Let me go right this instant! I'm warning youuoooooaaah!" He nearly bit his tongue as she spun him around, giggling.

"You're funny!" she laughed.

_Well, at least we've got that going for us._ Damien muttered.

Venka let him go, and Faris got up, turning around and running for the door.

"Hey!" Venka turned and gave chase, but he was already half way, she was faster than him, but he'd make it to the door.

_Yeah… follow me through that door, and I'll drop you down those stairs._

_Wait what?!_ Donovan began, _Are you crazy?! That'll hurt her really badly!_

_No it won't._ Faris retorted, his diabolical planning was cut short however. Cut short not by parental control, or his own conscious, but rather, a loose spring board hurtled him to the carpeted ground nearly fast enough to break a baby tooth. Venka was on him like a wolf on downed prey. She straddled him like a deranged cowgirl and unsheathed her weapon, a tube of lipstick.

"No… please, no… anything but that, no!" Faris struggled physically with all his might, but there was no way a 1 year old could beat a 3-year-old in a physical fight.

One might wonder why Faris didn't simply strike at her with his mental prowess, while he wasn't a master, he could probably paralyze over a dozen 3-year-olds with no trouble. The reason was simple, Venka had a magical capacity.

_This goddamned… it's like playing with a bomb with a voice activated detonation._

Venka was two years older than Faris, and when she had been checked, she had been discovered with the magical capacity of, in Angela's words, "if 5 powerful human mages mixed with 2 elven mages, then they drank some of my potions."

It was to the point of ludicrousness, a charm was put on her that would keep her from accessing magic, but it could be broken if she became too emotional, because of that, she had to be a bit more pampered to keep her from going overboard, luckily she was tomboyish enough that a scrape or bruise wouldn't get her crying, but the trauma of a mental assault would probably do some major damage to Faris's home and family, not even mentioning he himself who'd be at the epicenter. With solemn tears and thoughts of his family's safety, Faris glared at the dreaded red thing as it approached his face…

And so, for a year, he faced this torture, Venka would make him her plaything twice a week, with the only respite coming from his own self training and Angela's visits. Ironically, Elva, who had been the bane of his existence, ended up becoming his greatest confidant, whilst she no longer heard or felt his pain, she still was giving ways to relieve or remove his pain, and since she could share his joy, she had a greater incentive to comfort him, a win-win he imagined.

"I wanna play!" Faris kept his eyes closed, praying that the red-haired demoness went away. Elva smiled lightly.

"He's sleeping, you don't want to be rude to him, right? You want to grow up to be the perfect proper lady…"

Venka pouted. "Fiine… when will he wake up?"

"Give it some time."

After finally chasing Venka away Faris extended his mind. _Thank you._

_You are welcome… how did the lipstick feel?_

_Hey! I thought you couldn't…_

_I can't feel your discomfort no. But I can feel hers, she's upset she can't dress you up like a little princess again._ Elva's mirth was apparent. Faris looked mortified at the revelation.

_So, I'm still not safe._

_Don't worry, I won't do this to you often._ Elva smiled.

_Often?!_ Before he could continue the conversation, Bergan and Haya entered the room, followed by Angela.

Elva immediately frowned as they entered the room. Setting Faris down she began to pack.

"What's going on?" Faris asked, worried.

Angela gave a taut smile, "I'm going to have to separate you from your parents again."

"Wait… why?!" Faris got up.

"Unfortunately, because of your mother's blood."

Faris cocked his head. In confusion. "Mom's blood?" Haya looked terrified and tearful. Bergan clenched his fists. "Mom? Dad?" He asked, growing panicked.

_Calm down Faris… you're okay._ Damien called out to soothe Faris, which caused him to calm down somewhat.

"Sorry Faris, your mom, has a condition that nearly killed her when she was younger, we didn't think it would affect you, but… it did." Bergan announced.

Haya picked up Faris, "before I turned 7, all my magic fled my body, nearly killing me, if not for my family patriarch, I would have died, but the resources to prevent that from happening aren't here…

"…Where are they grown?" Faris asked, worried.

Angela answered. "Deep in the Spine, cultivated by the Urgals."


	6. Chapter 6

"Energy cannot be created nor destroyed, merely changed."

Angela had been teaching lessons for a few days now, many of her lessons were actually close to the physics and science lessons Damien had learned in school, though tweaked with the inclusion of magic. The trek to the spine would be long, so, while they travelled, she took it upon herself to truly teach Faris magic.

"From your memories I gleaned that Oromis had taught Eragon about how it was easier to manipulate natural forces than to generate his own. That one could connect to living things and draw power from them. And that, advancing that thread it is possible to funnel natural forces in a more efficient way without expending too much of yours or another living being's magic, merely by using another source or sources as a catalyst."

She stood up and pointed at the campfire.

"Brisingr, vindr, adurna"

After a few seconds, the flames flared out into a huge conflagration, ultimately burning out in a few seconds, but not before nearly blinding everyone around and leaving the area feeling hot. Solembum moved beyond the location and sat at a cooler area, yawning to take a midmorning nap, and Elva remained quiet as she doodled on the ground.

"The fire is already there, the fuel is already there, all I did was increase the speed in which the flames consumed their fuel, this in turn meant the fire burned faster, brighter, and deadlier. Hmm a lot of -er's in that one." Angela turned in to herself. "Though I was always more a fan of -ings as opposed to er's, people shouldn't be concerned with comparisons, only that they are in action..." She continued this rambling for a bit on before turning to Faris, who by then was looking at the remains of the fire, blackened bits of ash that barely held the shape of logs and sticks.

"You mentioned Brisingr, vindr, and adurna, fire, wind or air, and water respectively, that doesn't explain exactly what you did but…" Faris thinks to himself. "Wait I got it! You fueled more of the flames, directed more oxygen to fuel the flames, and directed water faster out of the wood to make it all the drier and easier to burn! Right?" He waited expectantly and Angela's smiling face elated him at first, only to turn suspicious as he noticed the way her grin formed on her mouth.

"My voice isn't that funny!" He shouted.

"No, no that's not why I'm smiling, I'm just happy you were able to grasp it so quickly, I did try to explain it in a similar format of how your teachers back from your land would have taught those around your age, well, your real age not your current physical age." Angela sits back down. "I was only using that as an example, when it comes to it, your effectiveness as a magic user comes to your creativity and…" She quieted down a bit. "Your power."

Faris noted the change in tone, seeing that even Solembum looked slightly uneasy, and Elva, who had stopped doodling and was actually looking away.

"What's wrong?" He asked. "Is it me?"

Angela cleared her throat. "well you see, I know I told your parents you had talent in magic, and you have high magical skill, very high magical skill, especially since you are so young and have already learned to project your mind you have easy access to your magical reserves. This coupled with your knowledge of the ancient language and aptitude for creativity and thorough understanding of basic laws of nature as well as implicit understanding of the more esoteric ones means you would be a very powerful spell caster indeed. But, like what you did before, you almost killed yourself with a spell, and Haya's condition isn't something to laugh at either. Even after we cure you, your magical capacity will be low. Lower still is the fact the two spells you cast take a toll on your physical ability."

Faris sat back slightly. "How do I have high magical skill then? That means I can tap into magic quickly and easily, how can I tap into it quickly, but I don't have the energy to use it?"

Angela placed a clean index finger on her forehead. "Everyone has a different aptitude, normally yes, humans have it harder than the other races of Alagaesia, but just like raw power to some extent, it can be trained and increased, as well as magically influenced."

She sticks up three fingers, wiggling each of them in front of Faris's young face.

"I posit three theories though for the extreme usage: one; when whatever caused you to be reborn into this world and allowed you to keep your memories also by byproduct or by purpose allowed you to gain this aptitude beyond your stature. Two; when your mother was carrying you, she had trouble, I gave her many potions and tinctures and medicines to help the birth through, and perhaps they had an effect on you before you were born, this is the least likely to me."

She stops speaking for a bit.

"Well?" Faris begins, "what is the third reason? Don't leave me in the dark!"

"Well, this may just be conjecture, but perhaps because your physical body is so young, yet your mind is so advanced, based on what I've learned from your memories, and if most of the biological rules from your world apply here, which I believe they do, then perhaps your mind is just structured a bit more advanced than the average human, a child your size would normally be leagues behind in the mental development department, you are already capable of speech, and the only thing holding you back before was physical development. You have the special privilege of a young mind capable of rapidly imprinting and learning new things, while being able to comprehend them intrinsically with an adult's reasoning, it would technically take me months to a few years to thoroughly teach a child your age the Ancient language, but since you also have the intelligence and experience necessary to focus and develop that knowledge and memorization, it's easier to awaken and utilize every part of your mind."

"_So, because children can learn things quickly when they can comprehend them, and I have the intelligence and experience of Damien to already comprehend a lot of things, I somehow 'trained' my mind to this level?"_ Faris thought to himself.  
"Okay, I can't cast spells then, I understand, so, what now?"

Angela smiled. "Well, we have about 3 weeks of travel for me to teach you something, what do you wish to learn."

Faris thought to himself, there were a plethora of things he and Damien wanted to learn, thousands of tiny tidbits he wished to learn about Alagaesia, though right now two things popped up in his head.

"Can you teach me the Urgal and Dwarf languages?"


	7. Chapter 7

The crisp cool autumn air chilled Faris's face as he toddled around the campfire.

Solembum was lying near the smoldering flames, using it to warm himself. Elva was cleaning the dishes, scrubbing with sand and rinsing with the stream water. Angela was carving a sculpture. Faris turned to look at the sculpture.

The sculpture Angela had begun taking a more distinct shape as she whittled it away. It was the form of a woman with long hair, a bright smile and two long shiny ram horns protruding from her forehead. The most noticeable feature was the fact her eyes seemed inhuman, amphibian like.

"Oh that's…"

"It's based on a story passed down by the Urgralga to their children and to the dams looking for perspective mates." Angela stated, never taking her eyes off the sculpture, as she added more details to the sculpture.

Faris smiled, "Is it a gift for the people we will be visiting?"

Angela winked. "Maybe"

The finished sculpture was an urgal woman, her most distinctive features were her long horns, long hair, and bright smile juxtaposed with an extremely gruesome looking face. The almost lifelike sags and wrinkles and drooping face gave a somewhat unsettling appearance.

"That's Maghara right?"

"Yes, it is, you know the legend?"

"When Nar Garzhvog helped Eragon travel to Du Weldenvarden, the Kull leader shared some Urgal legends, I believe this was one of them."

Angela laughed, "There are so many things you know that are normally regarded as closely guarded cultural secrets."

"Wait…" Faris began, "Did I do something wrong?"

"No, no" Angela began, "It's a funny thing that our entire world is a work of fiction somewhere else, it makes me think, are our works a truth of their own? My old master would have been extremely interested in meeting you."

A twig snapped just outside the clearing. Faris turned his head to see Elva returning alongside Solembum with a bundle of dry sticks.

"We have company" She says. "And I think they're disappointed with us."

"Who? How? Why?" Faris confusedly asked.

"Urgals" Angela states lightly. "We are near their territory of course, probably one of their youths eager to prove himself before his time."

No sooner has she mentioned that that an Urgal entered the clearing. Faris looked on nervously, the Urgal was shirtless and wielded a sharp axe and chipped shield. He was of a slender build and had a youthful face, looking almost human. Based on what Faris remembered the Urgal would probably be somewhere in his adolescence and not a full adult.

The Urgal scowled and spoke in his language. "Feh! Humans, not, worth my time, not even warriors, a woman, a girl, a manling, and a pet?! I gain no honor defeating them!" Solembum growled at the Urgal but Angela just smiled.

"Would your herndall be happy that you killed a friend of the Ugralga? Even now those are few and far in-between."

The urgal flinched, "You speak our tongue?"

"Well If I didn't, we wouldn't be able to get anywhere." Angela replied dryly

The kull youth grumbled to himself as he deliberated on what to do.

"How do I trust you? Just because a human knows our tongue doesn't make us friends. Many of my kin knew the human tongue before the fight against the Oath-breaker."

"Very smart" Angela replied. "I am a friend of Hamma, and I invoke Otragkith, so take us to her."

The Kull's eyes widened in surprise at the mention of that name. "I don't know if I can trust you, but if you say those words I must honor them, if you know our rites then you know how important honor is to our people, the shame you might bring me for lying will cost you your limbs human."

"Do as you wish; the truth will be revealed when we meet Hamma."

Faris looked on curiously.

_Who's Hamma?_ He inquired to Solembum.

_She keeps good milk._

Faris paused, and asked incredulously; _Is that all? Isn't there more?_

_Nothing really important._ Solembum replied nonchalantly.

_Good milk is good milk, I'm a little interested._ Damien's exuberance was shared with Faris, who smiled slightly.

The Kull youth grunted. "Follow me! And no trickery!"

The village was small compared to the city Damien lived near back on Earth. But it was still sizeable, there where over 40 buildings arranged, mostly huts of various sizes and decorated with the skulls of various animals in decorative displays, closer inspection revealed runes carved into each of the bones, From what he had learned from Angela, Faris could tell that these where words of protection and warding, meant to keep evil spirits away and soothe the restless spirits of those that died.

There where countless Urgal men and women milling about, as well as several children running about, some almost as tall as the kull youth who brought them to the village. Right now, though, most eyes were on them. Faris swallowed nervously and hid his face from their prying eyes, burying it into the cloth on the sling Angela had fastened to her back for ease of travel over large distances.

Faris was the only one amongst the four who showed any outward discomfort, Angela had a light smile on her face and Elva kept her face expressionless, Solembum's eyes betrayed the bout of drowsiness he was feeling at the moment. Faris observed them with awe, even if he was older like before he died, he wouldn't be able to stand the scrutiny.

_Some people are just born exceptional, I guess_. He mused.

_Pfft… doesn't that make us wild cards? I don't think many people, if any, were born like this._

He continued to get lost in his thoughts until the procession stopped in front of a particularly large building.

The most notable feature of the building was the ornate bone carvings and engravings, even more so compared to the others in the village. The Kull youth shouted to the two Urgals guarding the door and one entered, the other keeping watchful eye of the group, eventually a voice called out and the remaining Urgal stepped to the side, beckoning us in. The Kull youth chose to remain outside.

It was dark and warm inside, smelling of burning wood and sweet incense. Large intricate tapestries wove around the room, depicting images of Urgals in combat, triumphing against man, beast, and dragon alike. In the center of each weave was an Urgal wearing an ornate crest, two pairs of horns jutted from the crest, one matching the antlers of elk, and the other curving akin to that of a dragon. Angela's teachings of Urgal Language and culture allowed him to recognize some of the legends, Nar Korbag, who tamed one of the massive bears of the Beor Mountains, Nar Bucharkiv, the aptly named king slayer, who led a victorious wrought against three human kingdoms and captured and executed their kings. Nar Herndall Gleiflagh, an Urgal Dam whose mate had been slain in a battle against another tribe, instead of surrendering and being wiped out she led her Urgals to achieve victory.

Each tapestry as they went along was completed, leading finally to an incomplete tapestry on the table, several elderly Urgal women where working on it, synchronizing their sowing on each section, moving at the same pace never skipping a beat. It was slow work, but the detailed piece was inch by inch coming together. From what he could see it depicted a giant of a man in armor wielding a massive mace. He was surrounded by man, elf, werecat, and urgal in the midst of heated battle against him, another man had grabbed on to the giant from the back, above them 3 dragons soared overhead in battle, one blue, one red, and one black, the black one towered over the others.

Faris looked around until he noticed the procession stop, turning forward he locked eyes with an Urgal dam with long dark hair and large curled horns, she was in what could only be described as an armored dress, and had a baby in her arms, nursing it at the moment. She appraised the group with cool eyes until they rested on Angela, who carried a cheeky grin, the Urgal dam broke into a smile and called out in a rough accent; "Angela, you change as quick as the oak tree my friend! Come! Sit!" She began to bark orders at some Urgals standing guard, who quickly vacated.

Angela walked up to and lifted her chin up, exposing her neck. She smiled as she said, "Hamma, it is good to see you again, you look as strong as ever! And your horns! They look extremely glossy, are you following that elk weed treatment I recommended?"

The dam touched the tip of her horn and hummed in pride. "The young women and even some of the warriors have taken to this treatment as well, a shining horn shows health and strength, our clan is honored and feared for our strong men and shining horns now. Thank you, my friend, you are free to pass through our land at any time, if you would like, I can fetch a warrior to lead you safely through these mountains."

"Thank you for the offer, but I have another request to make"

"Oh?" Hamma switched to the human tongue as she cocked her head.

"Does it have to do with the pup hiding in your coattails?"

Faris stared wide eyed as she peered over and looked at him, her warm breath smelled of porridge and honey, and her baby stared at him with wide eyes, it's horns just tiny nubs on its head.

"Well… actually, yes." Angela began with a smile.


	8. Chapter 8

"Wait, you're leaving me here?" Faris asked incredulously.

"Yes, I am." Angela said as she packed. "You can speak the Urgralga language, you are privy to as much of their culture and habits as I am, thus you're well equipped to survive with them for the three years it will take for the herbs to be prepped for your body.

Faris gulped, "Uh… won't they, kill me though, without even trying." He envisioned one of the giant kull children, forcing on battle princess armor and using lipstick dyed with the blood of her enemies.

Elva laughed. One of the things Angela had helped Faris work through was the removing the spells he had cast earlier, despite hers and Elva's warnings, he chose only to remove the aspect that hid his fears and pain from Elva. As for why he did that…

"I'm not scared of Elva's words, and I'll take it as training, and it's the first spells I cast, and I cast them perfectly, so I don't want to completely get rid of it." He had announced proudly. Touching as it was, Elva still openly exploited his weaknesses, though her actions were slightly more playful than before, and a good deal less malicious. Though, her chuckles and laughs that burst whenever he experienced discomfort came about as a result of her being able to feel his entirety of emotions.

"Faris, you can survive here, due to the invocation of Otragkith they cannot harm you to the point of permanently killing you. And due to your size and ability, you'd have to wait till you were maybe 4 years old before they treated you like someone capable of play-fighting with the children."

"Great, so 2 years of doing nothing?" Faris asked.

"Not nothing," Angela handed him a satchel. Opening the satchel, Faris stared down at a piece of crystal.

"Quartz? Wait…" He smiled lightly, "Why quartz? Why not something more eye-catching, like topaz?"

"Because something more eye-catching would get robbed, even then, quartz is still relatively good, it's strong, and common." She smiles, "Imagine you have the magical ability to lift one 1-lb stone up 1 foot in the air for 1 hour."

"I can at least lift 2-and-a-half stones, I don't suffer from too much strain."

"No strain entirely, so that should show you that you have a low magic capacity." Angela smiled. "So, all you'll need to do is-"

"Yup. Put the energy of one stone in it once a day…" He looked, "By the time I'm back home I can maybe lift a bolder for a day."

"Don't go relying on magic too much." Angela admonished, "Galbatorix for all his power lost."

"I know, so I'll just make sure I have an unflappable mind." Faris joked.

"And how will you do that?" Angela asked.

_He has a good sparring partner._ Damien announced suddenly. Since their mental development was tied, they were similar in mental strength, to the point that while Faris was the superior, they developed as they fought mentally.

And like that, it was settled, Angela gave Faris the mirror. "It's enchanted to allow you to reach them once a week… try not to get into too much trouble."

Elva added dryly, "Because they'll kill Angela if you have a single bruise."

"Ha-ha, then I'll try my best…."

"…Ha-ha, she's screwed." Faris winced as the urgal dam stitched his stomach.

"Be still child," Hamma said as she boiled the needle that had pierced his side and threaded his stomach back together once again. "Every time you move you risk spilling the little blood you do have."

Faris grit his teeth. "I take in your wisdom Hamma." He winced as the hot needle pierced his flesh, tears streaming.

_OWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!_ Damien screamed internally, perhaps a blessing of their odd relationship was the fact that Damien could, and in many cases did block the pain Faris faced and took it in himself, how it worked wasn't something either of them could fully explain but Faris was certainly capitalizing on it. _You capitalize on that a little too often you know!_

Faris grimaced as he remembered the kull child that hurt him.

Zhodar was the leader of the Kull youth, and at 5 years old, looked closer to being a 10-year-old. He seemed to hate Faris with a passion simply for being human. And Faris, who didn't like being the stooge of any relationship, wasn't warm to him in the slightest either, and to Damien's discomfort, neither of them were content to just let things be. Whilst Zhodar would bump into, shove, and sometimes strike at Faris lightly, Faris would insult his intellect, beat him out in lessons the Urgal Shaman, Naclak taught, and proved that despite having such an inferior body compared to the Kull youth, he was a superior tactician.

The kids had been preparing for a wargame. They armed themselves with sticks with blunted, widened, leather and cloth tips, round slabs of wood as shields, clubs wrapped in cloth and downy feathers, their "armor" was also suitably wrapped, but Faris had none of those, he lacked the physical might to hold even one of those sticks.

"Confound this body." He muttered to himself as Zhodar sauntered up to him, laughing and pushing.

"You! Hornless runt! You should be in the nurse maid's home, suckling milk and crying, not wasting our glorious time. You being here waste's our time, your time, and the time of Gork who I'm beginning to wonder…" He turns to a shorter kull child, Gork, the child of Hamma. "Are you even a real Kull?"

Gork's face flushed with anger, "I'm a real Kull you hornless! Ushnek Faris is way smar-" He had been cut short when Zhodar kicked him in the chest and pinned him to the ground.

"You! You dare call me Hornless?!" He laughed, but his eyes contained no humor. "You? Who crawls behind this… this…"? He turned to Faris, "This pale-skinned freak, with words beyond its years? This… manling, that dares try to think it's worthy of gracing our grounds?" He turned to strike Gork, but was knocked off his feet. As he scrambled up, he looked in shock and rage at Faris, who clutched his quickly bruising right arm.

_WHY THE FUCK DID YOU PUNCH HIM?!_ Damien railed.

_Shut up! Shut up for a second and let me think!_ Faris blasted back as he began perusing through Damien's memories on martial arts. After visualizing some of it he gripped the quartz in his other hand. He had little practical understanding of what he was doing, only that he used magic to supply a 'certain amount of force' behind his punch, enough to knock down Zhodar, but evidently not enough to knock him out, but too much for his hand to handle. The fact he felt pain meant that the agony Damien was going through was likely severe.

_"__Waíse Heill"_ He whispered, alarmed at the rate his reserves in the quartz were depleting, already losing a 10th of it's stores from his single year of storage.

_We're not even 4! We wouldn't have that much energy!_ Damien retorted angrily. _And he's getting up!_

Faris allowed himself to fall to the ground, just barely missing Zhodar's reckless charge. Zhodar tumbled and slipped, Faris took the opportunity to gain more distance as his mind raced. If he let this continue, he'd be killed for certain.

"Hornless… to think you'd have some strength in those feeble arms." Zhodar wiped the spittle from his mouth. "Alright then, come at me!"

Faris raised an eyebrow, "No thanks! You're smell is bad enough over here!"

This enraged Zhodar, who charged low this time.

_"__Sharialyí"_ _(move) _Faris muttered, hopping to his right just quick enough to avoid Zhodar's charge, the kull youth, not one to be caught by the same trick again, dug his fingers into the ground, using them to scrabble and quickly turn to charge Faris. Faris nearly passed out as Zhodar's left horn stabbed him in the side. Using a bit of his panicked strength, Faris brought a fist down on Zhodar. The kull youth flinched but kept charging, hurtling for a tree. In panicked desperation Faris screamed out _"Slytha!"_ Zhodar hit the ground, Faris slipping from his now unconscious grasp and rolling on the floor. Just as the adults were led to the scene Faris awoke Zhodar, who got up, narrowing his eyes at Faris. If not for Hamma, who grabbed the boy by the back of the neck and tossed him, Faris would have been crushed. As the Urgals came to pick him up, he barely found and grabbed his quartz, keeping it close to his body.

_So, what did we learn…_ Damien asked?

Faris grit his teeth, sighing as Hama put away the needle and applied a foul-smelling poultice to his wound. _Just kill him and be done with it…_

_What the hell… sometimes I wonder who's the child._ Damien's shock was short lived as he spoke. _No… we prepare… don't go after someone and just stand there like that, you might be the dominant part of the psyche but you're sure as hell not going to get us killed._

"So, teach me." Faris muttered in English, if Hamma had understood, she made no note of it, simply wrapping Faris in cloth and letting him rest.

Faris's rest was short-lived. Gork came into the room.

"Faris… Ushnek, are you okay?"

"Yeah Gork… I am alive." Faris announced, smiling, "I'll be as strong as ever."

Gork's face broke into a smile, "That's good! I was worried Ushnek would be…"

Faris closed his eyes for a bit. "Hey, I'm tough."

_Seeing as how you could still sing soprano that voice is very unconvincing._ Damien retorted dryly.

"I'm worried Ushnek, the elders don't want you in the village anymore."

"What?" Faris asked, "Why?"

"Because you've been disrupting the peace, and Zhodar's father is the tribe's top warrior. He lost his dam from the Oath Breaker's Betrayal." Hamma said somberly. "So, both he, his son, and many of our warriors have a great disdain for your folk, the fact a child lives amongst us and is privy to our culture and language is to many an insult to their traditions."

_I wasn't even born then…_ Faris sighed, "So… is there anyway I can defend myself?"

"Disagreements are settled by fighting, since the issue came ahead because of your fight with Zhodar, they want you two to fight again." Hamma shook her head. "Many of these warriors seem to overlook what Mooneater has done for us, that they dare raise a hand against her disciple."

"That's why Ushnek, it's not safe for you…" Both Gork and Hamma looked on at Faris's smile.

"Hmph, okay, I'll play their game." He looked at Gork and Hamma, "I'm not of age, so I can request at least a year of preparation, and determine the time and place, as long as it's within the village. As I'm an outsider, I'm not allowed to pick the weapons, but that won't matter too much." Faris grit his teeth, his determined look juxtaposed with his childish face and body striking an odd light. "They'll regret making light of me…"


	9. Chapter 9

_"__Are you certain you're alright?"_ Haya asked in concern.

"Definitely mom, I got spooked when I nearly tripped." Faris smiled, through slow application of his reserves in the crystal, Faris had been able to heal enough that he could stand and walk, just in time for his weekly talk with his parents. As he spoke into the mirror, he could see Gork poking his head from outside the room, curious to see Faris's parents.

"Be sure to rest lots, it's starting to get cold, we wouldn't want you to catch a chill." Bergan said

Faris smiled. "You don't have to worry about that, I sit tight most of the time."

"Though, I would be interested in learning about Urgals, but it was a miracle they allowed you to stay here, how much longer before their herb is able to help you?"

"About 1 and a half more years dad, but as soon as it's done, I'll be back home before you know it, Love you guys!"

"We love you too." The communication was cut off. After breathing a sigh of relief, Faris picked up his walking stick.

"Okay Gork, let's go."

They made their way to the large hall in the center of the village, by this point the tapestry was nearly complete, it depicted three dragons flying in separate paths, one green, one red, and one blue, and below the blue dragon, a boat, sailing into golden clouds. It awakened melancholy feelings in Faris, almost causing him to bump into Zhodar, who stood in front of him imperiously.

"I see you survived manling, a pity." Zhodar smirked at Faris, who looked at him with slight disdain.

"Yeah, seeing your face does make me regret surviving."

"You'll do more than regret soon!" He shouted, quieting when the Urgals turned to glare at him. He backed down, glowering at Faris for his embarrassment, Faris merely smiled at him.

"Ahem. We are here to see whether the man-child should be taken from our village." An elder Urgal with horns nearly twice as large as his head and mottled skin covered in skin tags spoke. His face was so wrinkled Faris thought he could guess the man's age simply counting the wrinkles.

"I believe he should." A tall, impressive Kull stood up, muscles bulging and horns shining, he glared at Faris. "This pup… doesn't belong in our halls, his presence stinks our homes and poison's our children's strength."

"You're being foolish." Another urgal shouted, "He's merely a child! And he can speak our tongue! That's not to mention that he's Mooneater's disciple! The fact he hasn't been treated with respect by your ilk is-"

"MY ILK?!" The kull laughed, "I'm simply here talking about keeping our culture pure, now you say, MY ILK? Like we're a poison? This child is the poison my brothers! Next thing you know we'll invite humans and elves to compete for our dams!"

Shouting erupted between the urgals. This was interrupted by laughter. The urgals turned to look at Faris, who shrugged. "Quite funny, you're talking about me when I'm not here." He turns to the rest of the Urgals. "Urgals of the Catch-Tooth Tribe, I thank you it is true that I am imposing on you. But it is for two equally important reasons." He pointed to his body, "I have a disease in the flesh, one that cannot spread, but will kill me before my 6th winter if I am not given treatment using one of your culture's herbs." He scanned the room, swallowing his nervousness as he continued, "The second was to simply learn more about, and understand the Urgal Culture, where strength and skill in combat reign supreme." He looks at Zhodar's father, "If you remember, my master invoked Otragkith." He looked at the intimidating being, who's horns were as large as his body, with an impassive gaze. "If you cast me away, that's the same as sullying the oath. And if any of the other clans heard, your clan would lose some standing." This roused up more words, which Faris quieted by waving his arms wildly. "But I can sympathize, an Urgal child in a human village would likely not receive the hospitality you've given me. So, me being here is in many ways an insult. So, let us settle this fairly. This issue cropped up from a fight between I and Zhodar, so we shall settle it. I will die without that herb on my 5th year, so in exactly one year, I ask to challenge Zhodar in a single match, he of course can choose the weapon, as is his right, but I am allowed the location and time, as long as it is within the village."

This caused more of an uproar, but the uproar was that of laughter. Whether it was the urgals who wanted him gone and the urgals who wanted him to stay, they all laughed. Even Hamma couldn't help but look at him incredulously. Zhodar's father, still mid chuckle, pointed a trembling finger at Faris, "Y-you? Fighting my son?!" He began laughing again. "Let me guess, using your magic is what you think is a fair fight hm?! What you used to shamefully bring down my son you!"

"By Svarvok Ushnark I will not use magic to strike your son or strengthen my fists in our duel, nor will I use it to otherwise leave your son dead or unconscious."

Zhodar and his father shared cruel grins. "Fine… I accept your challenge, what say the rest!?"

The urgals, not ones to pass up an opportunity to see a good fight, beat their fists and tools on the table. Eventually the room quieted and the elder looked at Faris.

_"__Do you swear by the tongue of truth?"_ He asked in the Ancient Language. Faris cocked an eyebrow.

_"__For the entirety of the year, no spell I cast, use, or think about, will be used to harm Zhodar, and during our battle in one year, I will not use a single spell on him."_ The elder smiled at Faris's answer.

"The battle will be in one year…"


	10. Chapter 10

"Are you worried?" Elva asked as she applied the thick grease to Faris's arms, legs, and chest.

"A little…" Faris smirked, "But I have a 95% chance of winning."

_And the other one-twentieth?_ Solembum yawned.

"He'll kill me in the first strike." Faris laughed.

_Not funny at all. _Damien muttered.

"Don't worry, you'll win, I've foreseen it." Elva said, smiling.

"Thanks… wait…" Damien frowned.

"This isn't like with Nasuada, you'll win, even without me saying so." Elva gripped his tiny hands, glancing at his rugged, callused fingers, way to scarred and gnarled to have been the result of simple injury or trauma. She looks at Faris's blue eyes with her deep violet eyes, her gedwäy ignasia glowing slightly in it's silvery sheen. "You can do this, don't worry."

Faris smiles lightly, "Thanks."

"Though half of me is screaming at me to tell you to stop, while also screaming that stopping you may be just as bad."

"…Thanks?"

"Of course, there's a chance you might lose… you know." She points at his pelvis. "Urgal horns are surprisingly sharp, and Zhodar's evidentially a quick charger."

"Thanks! Great! LALALALALA! Can't HEAR THAT LAST PART!" Faris shouts in shock, getting down as he bolts for the door.

He sighs, "I still didn't tell Angela, and how she doesn't know…"

_Angela was busy investigating something, so she hasn't had the time to check on you, as long as you're alive and fed, you're alright. I think._ _So… we're ready. _Damien stated.

_Regardless of if we were or weren't…_ Faris continued.

_Yeah…_ The child ignored the snow that began to fall, the snow already on the ground already radiated the cold.

_You know, this reminds me of the story of Ahno._

It had been interesting witnessing Urgal culture, if he had any comparisons that could be made, he could probably make connections to an odd mix in between Spartans, Vikings, Mongols, and a little something extra. They were a very war-oriented race, priding themselves in strength ad prowess above all else, interestingly enough though, for that reason they tended at the same time to not demean those of a lower cast, while a low-ranking warrior would likely not get as many amenities as the higher-ranking ones, there was no preferential treatment in the battlefield. Faris thought to at first chalk it up to ignorance or mindless bloodlust, but he learned quickly that the Urgals took the time to train their men in combat techniques before going out for a raid on another village. Such "raids" were though little more than bloody battle in which the only prize was how many opponents you could defeat. After the war Urgals had been given enough land that they could take to raising livestock, the dwarves had even been "gracious" enough to lend the weakest and runtiest of their Feldûnost to the Urgals, this semi insult backfired, without having to worry about predators of the likes of the Beors or the giant wolves that littered the Beor mountains a hybrid of the normal and Dwarvern variety proved extremely viable for the Urgals. Urgals now seemed content fighting each other, at least for those in the Spines, as it was the domain of Roran, the Urgals out of respect and maybe even a bit of fear avoided catching the ire of the only living mortal man to ever best an Urgal in unarmed combat.

Another interesting thing was their treatment of the infirmed, sometimes Urgals came back with injuries that would leave them crippled, and then there were a few Urgals who were either too old to fight, or were born with deformities, like blindness, deafness, etc. These Urgals weren't ostracized by the main group. He had asked Hamma about it.

"There was a legend of an Urgal named Korga, he was the chieftain of 4 tribes combined into one when he defeated their champions in a 4 on one contest of strength. He was a proud, boastful warrior, but his pride got the better of him, saying that he was so great, he could defeat Svarvok Ushnark. Ahno, the trickster god and Svarvok's son was not pleased with his boasting and told Korga he could face Svarvok if he defeated Kug, his little brother. Kug had been born with a crooked leg and blindness, so Korga laughed proclaiming "If this is the best the gods can display before me! Then I shall be the god of gods!"

Before their duel Ahno gave Kug a blessing, that he could never fall down. Using this blessing Kug tricked Korga into chasing him towards the edge of a ravine, where Korga fell to his death, and Kug, being blessed by Ahno, did not. Most warriors dislike this story, and it isn't our most popular story as Ahno is infamous for ruining the luck of proud Urgal warriors, but it serves to warn us, the crippled but alive are blessed by Ahno, who himself was an outcast, to harm them is akin to insulting Ahno, and misfortune follow those blessed by Ahno.

This was one of Faris' favorite stories, but it wasn't a popular one amongst the Urgal children, who more often enjoyed stories of Urgals triumphing against impossible odds with the same resources, their brawn and guts. For this reason, he had ended up butting heads with the leader of the kids, Zhodar, and that was how he had been injured the first time.

_That child hates anything that isn't settled through fair one on one combat, he thinks because humans are naturally physically weaker than Urgals, our roles should be changed. Which… I don't hate him for._ Faris announced.

_Yeah, but his smug face pisses me off._ Damien muttered, Faris smirked at his uncharacteristic ire, shaking his head as he quickly approached the circle of urgals by the old tree in the center of the village. The snow fall becoming heavier.

As the snow continued to fall around them Faris turned to look at Zhodar, who looked at him with contempt, the kull child was over twice his height, and his horns had grown enough to begin to slightly curl, giving him a devil like appearance, which was very fitting at the moment. Gork lay crumpled, beaten by Zhodar just a bit earlier trying to defend Faris's honor from Zhodar's harassment. If not for his plan and promises in the ancient language, Faris would have risked his life killing the Kull youth. So, he sat, pretending to let Zhodar rest.

"It wouldn't be fair if you were exhausted after fighting my friend asshole"

Zhodar hadn't been aware of that word, as Faris had switched to English on it and agreed, retorting,

"Fine then hornless, I'll give you time to prepare you self for a beating."

Faris had gone up to Gork, who was being attended to by two of the Urgal children who normally tagged behind him, they looked at Faris with open hostility but let him approach. Gork scowled as he approached.

"Why are you going to fight him? That's stupid! You remember what happened last time."

Faris without skipping a beat asked back, "And why would you help me? You haven't talked to me at all, I know I stay in your home but we haven't been friendly to each other. If I let him get away with beating you like that, I won't be able to sleep okay."

He stood up, casting a spell to lessen the pain for Gork, who widened his eyes, opening his mouth to say something before thinking better of it and closing it.

Faris was woozy even after such a simple spell, thinking of how he had read how Trianna stated she could easily deaden the pain soldiers could feel. He had an extremely low amount of stamina for magic if it a lesser, temporary form of such a simple spell could exhaust him, but that was what the thirty minutes were for, for him to think, and prepare.

_Too bad we couldn't bring the stone._ Faris thought.

"Not scared, are you?" Zhodar mocked.

Faris stared evenly at Zhodar who continued to taunt him as he paced back and forth.

_Keep talking_… Faris thought. _It will give me time to prepare._

Faris made sure to keep his eyes on Zhodar, to keep the Kull child from anticipating what he was doing. Zhodar for the most part was being a relatively good sport. Only asking when the thirty minutes were up every few seconds.

_"Vaetna, Hurdh, deloi, stenr, flutningr" _He whispered this chant to himself, slowly feeling his energy drain, resting every few minutes to slightly recuperate, but not completely each time, he eventually completed two of his traps he had been working on for the past year before Zhodar finally got impatient.

"Argh, human! I have waited ages, if I wait anymore, I'll grow whiskers! Get up now!"

Faris' eyes were sealed shut as he did his best to recuperate as quickly as he could, practicing the breathing exercises from when he was Damien. His parents had wanted him to take an extracurricular along with his studies, until high school senior year his life was so busy either cramming information into his mind or training his body, he had little time for friends, he often was the subject of ostracization and cruelty by other kids, so he had been used to the treatment from the Urgal children during this final year. What he hadn't been used to was someone standing up for him, he often had to fight his own battles, and someone trying to help him made him feel… good. It was a feeling he didn't want to lose. Faris got up and faced Zhodar, staring him evenly in the face.

"Alright then, let's get this over with, hornless." He stated with a smile.

The kull youth snarled and charged him, he was faster than Faris had anticipated, but even then, it was for naught, a loud crunch could be heard and Zhodar's triumphant face was replaced with confusion as his foot dropped into a foot-deep hole. This imbalance caused him to teeter forward, right into Faris' fist, which had been cocked back to punch him in the side of the Jaw. Faris felt an explosion of pain to his cheek as he was knocked to the side, Zhodar's reflexes where still better than his, and the giant of a child slowly pulled his foot out of the ground, it looked swollen and bruised, likely falling in a bad angle. As Faris wiped the blood from his cracked lip he saw that the kull's eyes were unfocused. Faris smiled, ignoring the explosion of pain in his mouth. A punch to the jaw was extremely disorienting, even if he couldn't generate the strength in his fist to actually hurt the kull normally, combining it with the speed of Zhodar's fall would help, unfortunately it wasn't hard enough to knock the Kull out, but he was staggering a bit now, the shock of the fall and the punch had both physical and mental affects, and Faris knew he had to take advantage of it. He ran towards Zhodar, who clumsily smacked him in the face, breaking his nose, Faris fought through the pain and kicked out, his foot smacking the boy in his groin. Zhodar collapsed from that, and Faris took the opportunity to scramble behind him and hold him in a chokehold, as he shifted his arms around Zhodar began to flail about, standing up and attempting to pull Faris off of him. The Urgals began to erupt into roars of encouragement and aggression.

Children are a lot more flexible than adults…

This thought filled Faris' head as he was flipped off Zhodar, who's leg now hurtled towards his face with deadly precision, Faris heard the cracks before the pain set in, and rolled with the momentum of the kick as Zhodar continued forward trying to kick again and again. Eventually Faris managed to get up only to face a second kick form Zhodar, lights flew in his eyes and he could taste the blood in his mouth as he began to back up more and more.

_G-aaagh! Argh…_

_Just _thought _a little more._

He through the pain as he clutched his face, blood seeping through his fingers slightly. As Zhodar reached forward to punch him Faris simply fell backwards to avoid the blow and Zhodar was on him in an instant, preparing his right hand for an explosive haymaker, his favorite technique to pull on a downed opponent, Faris used that moment to twist his head to the side violently, the fist barely missing him and crashing into the second trap, Zhodar had put so much into his punch that when his hand started going down the rest of his body began giving way, giving Faris enough time to give him a bloody headbutt before squeezing out of him and getting him in a sleeper hold.

10

Zhodar began to flail about scratching and elbowing Faris, who had a pained grimace on his young face.

9

Zhodar attempted to roll, to get his weight on Faris, who wheezed in pain but didn't let up.

8

Zhodar tried grinding left and right, to squeeze out of Faris' grasp, scratching and clawing his arm, causing light cuts.

7

Faris began feeling light headed as a bit more of his blood began to seep out of his face.

6

_"Vëoht"_ Faris whispered to himself as he felt his stamina begin to drain a bit, his bleeding slowed down for the time being, but the combined efforts felt extremely taxing.

5

Zhodar's movements started becoming a bit more sporadic, he tried getting up, but Faris kicked at his legs to trip him up every time he seemed to get a bit of balance.

4

Zhodar's movements started slowing down. Faris is began to feel light headed, his stomach felt sick as well.

3

"Darn it go down already!" Faris screamed in indignation, Zhodar's only response was to cock his head back to hit Faris in the face.

2

Zhodar's struggles finally began to slack off, Faris had finally gotten to him it seemed. Now all he had to do was-

.

.

.

Faris woke up in a bed, covered in bandages, Gork was looking at him worriedly and the shaman seemed to be doing something. His head hurt and his throat was extremely dry. He tried opening his parched lips and a waterskin was presented to him.

"What happened?" He asked Gork.

"Other boy knocked out, you declared winner, taken here to stop bleeding." The Shaman replied matter-of-factly.

"Oh! Hahaha!" Faris immediately regretted laughing as his sides exploded in pain.

"Stay still, rest, your teacher was called to come and return you."

Angela was coming here early? That wasn't good for him, he could hear them now yelling at him over how stupid he was.

"Why wait now?"

He turned his head in dread to see Angela looking equally cross and concerned. Elva wasn't even looking at him, and Solembum merely watched in interest.

"Hi ebrithil," Faris began but was interrupted by Angela flicking him on the nose.

"I told you not to do anything stupid! And look at you! Hell, what are we supposed to do now-"?

"With all due respect Uluthrek he won."

Angela flicked the kull child's nose, "and don't you interrupt me either young man! I'll have you know that he… he what now?"

Angela looked back at Faris with disbelief, who only shrugged and lay back down, closing his eyes.


	11. Chapter 11

The warm summer sun beat down on 7-year-old Faris's face as he lay at the edge of the pond, warming himself from his swim in the small lake. He found this lake with his friends a few weeks ago, it was right by the village's edge, and had several streams that flowed both in and out, the water was clean as a result.

Of course, Faris could always heal himself if he or the other kids got sick. But he chose normally to let the sickness take its course, helping build up all those immunities, no matter how painful it got, only using enough magic to counterattack the most severe side effects. If there was something he had learned from Angela after all this time, it was that she was as logical and pragmatic as she was eccentric.

"Don't go relying on magic to save you for every little thing, or you'll be too tired to do anything about the real issues." He murmured to himself as he gently touched his eyes, cooling them slightly from the sun's warmth. He had turned 7 when Angela returned with him back to the village for the last time, the Kingdom's agents had gotten wind she frequented the area so it wasn't safe for her to be here anymore. Faris was sad to see her and Elva go but he didn't worry too much about their safety, Solembum for the most part still seemed to come and go, Werecats by law where a respected people and harming them could bring about hefty fines, and even then, very few people would be foolish enough to try and tangle with a werecat.

His practical training from Angela was mostly complete however, he knew almost as many words in the ancient language as she did, knew all the words in the Urgal and Dwarven tongues, and was almost as knowledgeable in their cultures as a true-blooded member of their respective races. The biggest hurdle they overcame however was the unstable psyche between Faris and Damien, through his newfound knowledge, Angela's experience and tonics, and Elva's foresight, they were slowly able to piece back together the shattered parts, almost fixing Faris's damaged mind, to the point that he and Damien were again as interchangeable as the day they were born in Alagaesia, though even after that completion they'd need time to rest, and heal.

"Keep away from anything overly stress inducing mentally." Angela had said, "I did my best to teach you and practice with you mentally but a powerful enough duelist will shatter your mind again, and that might complicate the wound worse." So Faris was given orders to take it easy.

That being said, he opened his eyes and looked to the sides, the children were playing in the lake, some swimming, others splashing about, and a few others skipping stones or playing with sticks, bugs, or whatever else they could find, apparently times had been good as there were at least 20 children out and about. Faris closed his eyes again, he missed the time he spent with Angela, and he missed the Urgal village, he was never strong enough to join any of their rough games until the very end, and by that time the kull youth his age were much too big for him to even attempt to play wrestle anymore. The fights among the human children were honestly child's play in comparison to the epic wars between the urgal children. Faris' inner thoughts were interrupted by a splash of water directly into his face, some going up his nose. He sputtered and shot up quickly, turning to the person who did it.

"Why are you just lying there! Tired already?" A girl called out to him.

"I was trying to dry myself off, no help from you!" He retorted as he looked at his assailant. Venka, a girl with deep green eyes, fiery auburn hair, and an even more fiery temper stared at him with a smirk on her face.

She was the oldest of their group, and was two years his senior. She was the same Venka who made his one year back with his parents a living hell. And to add insult to injury wore a superiority complex on her sleeves simply by receiving extra lessons from Anya, the local state magician, who had come, replacing the original to train Venka before her eventual journey to the capital.

_Of course, I was taught by Angela to hide my magic._ Faris mused. But even he had to admit even if he was more knowledgeable and likely skilled in the magics compared to Venka and even Anya, Anya had years of experience and more magic due to her naturally larger adult body, and Venka, to his dismay, had an abnormal amount of magic since birth, that not only didn't lessen, but seemed to balloon, enough that Anya, who made it apparent she was a high ranking mage, also made it apparent that Venka was special. Of course, most of the villagers didn't trust Anya at first, so she demonstrated her teaching skills to the rest of the students, teaching them writing and arithmetic and history at levels still reserved for larger villages and the royal capital. This coupled with her healing the villagers of the various injuries and illnesses that many faced with relative ease earned her a place in their hearts.

Of course, Faris didn't like her. Anya pretended to be nice and kind and cordial, but she held a smile for too long, and acted too bubbly, it didn't feel natural on her, in fact, the only time he ever observed her actually being happy or interested in something was when she began to teach Venka magic, Venka wasn't slow by any means, and her high magic reserves meant she could spend hours learning a lesson, so her pace was fast. She knew over 30 words in the ancient language, and could cast a host of spells. Anya favored Venka so obviously that it was almost comical how none of the adults really noticed, lessons Venka would take half an hour on with the rest of the children she would spend hours upon hours gently tutoring Venka. Since every one of Anya's general lessons were things he already learned either from Angela or from his old world, Faris took it upon himself to help the other kids who had trouble after each lesson, because of that he earned their favor and friendship, Venka wasn't happy with the idea of someone else being regarded as the best and smartest child in their village, so she did her best to annoy and antagonize him. Of course, she was taught she should never use her magic without strict guidance or permission. Another bucket sized ball of water smashed into Faris' face. Of course, though, she wasn't the most obedient child around.

This time Faris was ready when the third ball came towards him, he struck out with his fist open palm, slapping a good deal of water right back into Venka's face. She worded her spell to have the water form a ball and hit him, which due to her extreme level of magic and lack of common sense normally formed the water into a smooth almost class like ball as hard as concrete, luckily, she was pretty slow speaking the ancient language, and even Anya at her fastest was no match for him. So, he mixed her spell with his. Spreading the water out just enough to keep it from breaking bones and bruising skin, it still stung though, but it was worth it as Venka sputtered in rage.

"How dare you splash me! I have lessons with Ms. Anya later today and I have to look presentable!" She hissed at Faris with contempt on her face. She raised her fist to hit him, and fell face first as he slipped by and tripped her.

"Your punch was so slow I saw it yesterday while I helped my mom bake pies." Faris laughed as she picked herself up, dirt clinging to her damp hair and skin. "How were they? I heard Piecha fruit is your favorite." He chuckled as she glared at him.

"The Piecha was great! The chicken pot pie was disgusting though! I bet you made that one, because you know I hate it!"

"Actually, I made the Piecha, my mom made the chicken pot pie." Faris laughed louder, "You'd think with you being Anya's 'favorite and best student' you could guess at least that."

"We'll see who's the best when I-!" She was interrupted by a stick barely missing her face and startling her.

Faris stuck a tongue out and began to run into the forest. "Catch me if you can!" He barely had to wait a few moments before he heard her scream and chase after him, followed by the raucous laugh of the children, who by now had gotten used to this game. As long as Faris took the lion's share of Venka's time and attention, she was too busy to attempt to assert dominance over the children, and they could get along as they liked. The dark greens of the forest were the perfect camouflage for Faris, who was wearing a mottled green tunic. When he first showcased his look to his friends amongst the kids, they teased him, calling it silly and asking if he was trying to be an elf. Even with their teasing, they had to admit he was fantastic at hiding amongst the dense forest undergrowth when he wore the clothing.

Venka on the other hand stood out like a literal single ripe strawberry on a bush, last pick of the season. He stifled a laugh as he saw her fumble into the forest, her cloths and hair being tugged on by the numerous branches. He had been generous enough to break a few branches and twigs to give her a bit more leeway, but she still seemed to attract every single loose branch and twig on her path as she blindly moved forward. Faris tailed her, sticking to the thick branches above so as not to fully alert her, the animals acted naturally around him due to his promises in the ancient language to not be a threat to them if they allowed him to pass bye. He played this game with her many times, run into the forest, lead her down a path until she game up and began to panic, then pretended he found her and then he'd run back, an angry Venka in tow, she'd normally give up the chase when they returned to the lake, get scolded by her parents when they got home, then get coddled by Anya, rinse and repeat. Today was a little different, Venka had gone much deeper than she did before, even deeper into the forest than Faris had ever gone. He grew worried, he mostly avoided this area because of the bear tracks he encountered, he didn't want Anya to know that he was tailing her so he pulled ahead, there was a clearing there and if he reached it, he could lure her in then begin the chase home before something bad happened. He reached the middle of the clearing just in time to see Venka bundle in, her eyes inflamed and face determined.

"Looks like you go-!" Faris began before he was lifted 10 feet into the air by Venka's spell. His eyes widened in panic, the point of this game was to exhaust her mentally so that she couldn't cast spells, he probed her mind and found that she was close to maybe halfway exhausted, yet she still had so much energy! Faris would have felt envy if he wasn't panicking over this situation.

"Not so tough now are you! This will teach you to make fun of me! Look how strong I am! I'll leave you up there all day until you beg for mercy or pee your pants!" Venka laughed cruelly. Faris rolled his eyes at this, even with her large reserves of magic, Venka was straining herself, he was probably the heaviest thing she lifted, and she chose to lift him from 20 ft away high up in the air at a rapid pace and hold him at that height, she had to put everything into keeping him afloat and likely wouldn't have the concentration to cast another spell. Faris looked down at her, both literally and figuratively.

"I don't know, I kind of like the view, I can be here all day, but you know you can't." Faris replied to her taunts with equal haughtiness, but he was backed up by science, she couldn't keep the spell going on forever, and if push came to shove he could borrow some energy from the forest, there were so many plants and animals in the area that he could overpower her briefly if he took only a quarter of the total reserves collected, but he wouldn't need that much energy, the use of the technique left him feeling sick, as the first time he used it he accidentally killed some saplings and a badger under his favorite tree. In fact, there was a large amount of energy right behind them, just half of that would be enough.

_Wait_, Faris began thinking before calling out in panic, "Venka! Behind you! Bear!"

"Like I'm going to fall for that loser!" Venka giggled shaking her head, she was visibly perspiring at this point but continued to concentrate on the impertinent boy in front of her, that was likely why she only then noticed the deep ragged breathing behind her, turning to see a ginormous bear raising its matte black furred claws to swipe down at her. Faris did not hesitate in the slightest.

"Skölir!" A light gray force popped up between the bear's claw and Venka, blocking it from tearing her apart, a few seconds into its attack the bear began to back up, Faris had connected to its mind, it had no way of understanding what he did so he used its reserves to fuel the shield used to protect Venka from that attack, when the bear attacked her just then, it likely felt a huge sap in energy, it tentatively reached to hit her a few more times before roaring and turning around, bounding rapidly into the forest. Venka for her part stood completely still as the spell holding Faris in the air collapsed and he fell to the ground, he ended up using more energy that he would have liked to slow his fall, but they were alive and that was all that was important. He turned to look at Venka who was swaying woozily.

"Crap!" He yelled as he ran towards her, catching her before her head crashed into the hard rocks, he scraped his arms, elbows, and legs badly, tearing into his clothing. He winced in pain and looked down. His clothes were too damaged to mend with magic, and he wouldn't be able to explain the tears and dried blood on smooth clear skin, Venka was a terrible healer, and it was one of the lessons Anya seldom taught due her painful ineptitude and the fact practicing such a skill often included finding an injured and distressed person, who likely didn't have the patience to wait a few hours until a little girl finally figured out how to heal a broken wrist. He scowled as he slung her on his back, making his way back into the town. "Why'd you have to be so heavy stupid!" He did his best to concentrate in front of him, as to avoid looking at her unconscious, calm face, which looked uncharacteristically pretty to him at the moment.

He sighed as he made his way back to the village.


	12. Chapter 12

Whack

Faris grimaced as he held out his hands. Which had begun to form red welts.

"Forty-three" He winced before receiving another smack from an incensed Anya.

When he had returned to the village, he told the villagers that he had led Anya into the forest to attempt to trick her back and make a fool out of her, after which the bear showed up, Anya had wanted him to receive 100 lashes, his mother argued that while he had been irresponsible running into the forest no one got hurt and he brought Venka back safely. Eventually, everyone settled on 45 lashes to the hands. The "worst part" was that his mother had actually wanted 70 lashes, his dad, bless his soul was the voice of reason.

"He meant no harm, and you all know Venka's been starting to get a big head, it's great that our village will get attention because of her talents and ability, but it wouldn't do any good to have her end up abusing her great gifts because of arrogance. She used magic on Faris and the children, and if she had lost control could have hurt them badly. In fact, she's the one unharmed in this incident whilst my son is the one hurt."

The villagers agreed that that was a reasonable point and agreed on the side of leniency.

"Forty-five" Faris finished with a sigh, unsure what to do with his hands to lessen the pain.

Anya looked at him with contempt and anger. "If you had an issue with Venka's behavior, then as her teacher I will do something about it, don't go pulling stupid pranks like that again!" She turned in a huff and stormed back to the school yard, which doubled as her home.

Faris watched her go, his face still in the mask of pain, but his head clear and thinking. The second she began whipping him she had begun to invade his thoughts to try and see whether he had spoken the truth. Thankfully Angela had taught him well, allowing him to blank out most memories of the incident. She had begun to search deeper until he visibly twitched and looked around, after which she withdrew with confused panic. Faris was upset over her intrusion. From what he learned from Angela, many of the laws of the Broddring Kingdom were enacted by Nasuada in order to limit the actions of Mages both in and out of state control, one such thing was the requirement for a mage to request permission from a regional mage or city magistrate before delving into the minds of a normal citizen, unless the mage is certain their life is in danger they are held by law to uphold that rule. Then again Faris doesn't follow that rule, but he also doesn't look at people's memories, he only observed surface thoughts and willfully kept himself from observing anything else, a challenge that at times required him to just not try to connect to anything, but at the same time it was a training tactic utilized by Oromis when teaching Eragon, and it helped spread his mind and quicken his thoughts.

His mother walked up to him, her face hard, and grabbed him harshly by the arm. "Alright then, we are going home this instant!" Faris' face paled, his mother's never been this angry before, he followed her, turning to his father for help, he simply shrugged and walked behind them. As soon as they reached their home Faris' mother hugged him.

"Oh, my baby boy! Are you hurt anywhere? Do you have a fever! Do you need some soup! Mommy's sorry you had to face that, but you really did almost hurt someone! Don't worry mommy like that again okay!?"

"Mom you're squeezing me too tight!" Faris wheezed as Haya continued to hug her son until he started literally turning blue.

"Ok! Go washup, dinner will be ready soon!"

Faris sighed, shouting, "Yes mom, love you mom! See you dad!" as he ran to the washroom. Whilst there he contemplated healing his hands, but he instead chose to let nature take its course after checking to make sure it wasn't infected. He returned to the dining area to see his favorite dish, roast venison and grolbi, a grain that was basically sweet and spicy white rice imported from Surda. It was expensive so Faris began to wonder what was going on.

"Happy birthday son!" His parents shouted. Faris looked in confusion, then realized it probably was his birthday, he had forgotten it again.

Memories flooded of a time he was known by Damien. _Damien sat in a large oak table; a lovely chandelier was the only other thing in the empty room. On the table was a cake, 3 pieces had been sliced off, two of them were untouched, and would likely be left untouched until a maid was called to clean it up. Damien had a bandaged cut on his finger, from where he accidentally messed up slicing a piece of cake. There was a single candle with the number 14 on his slice, and a note on the table._

_"Sorry dear! Mommy and Daddy are busy at a pitch meeting for Daddy's new movie. Happy birthday."_

_Damien hadn't even read the note, it had been the same note last year, and the year before, the only difference being how old he was, and even then, they sometimes forgot to update the number. He took a bite of the cake._

_"Chocolate, just like every year" He took another bite. He hated chocolate cake._

Tears glinted in Faris' face, his parents looked on in concern until he smiled brightly at them. "Thank you for having me!" He said gently.

His parents smiled and hugged him. "We are blessed to have you Faris. Happy 8th birthday."


	13. Chapter 13

Faris spent the next two years training his body and getting stronger, as his mind continued to heal, he found to his interest that he could still, with some effort, separate the two halves of his conscious, thus, Damien proved to be an effective conversationalist, study buddy, and mental sparring partner. As Faris trained his mind, he and Damien trained their body. His friends got older, and some began hanging out with the large group less and less, family responsibilities beginning to takeover, Faris for his part had begun learning blacksmithing from his dad, and one of his prized possessions was a small sharp dagger with one sharp edge and one serrated then blunt edge, something he made himself. He had also taken up music and drawing, music because it allowed him to at least partially replicate the songs he remembered overhearing when at school and when passing through public areas. And drawing because it was simply the next step after being able to recall everything in his mind, to control his body to replicate the movements to put it on paper or parchment.

"Faris! Dinner! Go get your father then wash up!" Haya called.

"Got it ma!" Faris yelled at the top of his lungs, dashing to the forge were his father was at work, putting in the finishing touches to a "special project" he was working on. Faris didn't pry, and simply waited for his father to set down his instruments and cover what he was working on before tackling him from behind, the older man not even stumbling. Though Faris didn't put everything into that tackle. He focused on getting stronger and fitter, and his body, which hadn't yet gone through puberty, only showed that he was toned and lith. Which he was satisfied with for now.

"Hey son! What's all the fuss?"

"Dinner time!"

Both Faris and his father's stomachs rumbled, causing both of them to giggle. Pulling the wax putty from his ears, Faris's father began to wipe himself with a rag. "Alright, go-"

"Go wash up?! Already on my way! When don't I washup?" Faris laughed. Perhaps due to him no longer having to worry about being ostracized, and with his curiosity for magic and the cultures of Alagaesia slightly sated, Faris had begun to focus on his standard of living, he became a neat freak just a little away from dangerously neurotic, he had learned how to cook, how to repair bits of furniture, and little tricks to help around the house. It was to the point that his parents wouldn't need to remind him to clean up.

His parents would have been worried if not for how ready he was to get dirty playing with his friends or helping fix an especially big mess. _They had asked him why he was so big on being clean, while still getting himself sweaty, dirty, and grimy from hard work, playing, and training._

_Faris shrugged simply and replied, "It's not that I particularly hate being messy, but it's hard to do anything and it's even harder to approach new people if I smell like a pigsty. Besides, I think I'm one of the only kids whose parents don't have to threaten to keep their room clean and stink free." He laughs. "So even though I'm busy helping you guys, I still have time to run around."_

Faris washed himself quickly and thoroughly, the soap imported from the capital was popular amongst the citizenry. Heading downstairs, he engaged in some small talk with his family, they had invited some family friends over and the evening was lively. As he talked to people, he felt something drip down his shirt, looking down he saw an orange stain drip down, dyeing his tunic in fatty stew. As he tried to scoop the goop off of himself, he realized that it hadn't been just stew but a slug, wrapped in the stew, globed at his shirt. He looked up to see Venka, hiding her smile as she talked to her friends, stroking her long luxurious hair and acting like nothing happened, she turned to Faris, winking at him. Faris merely sighed and muttered, "Not worth my time." This seemed to inflame Venka, but she made to comment, simply continuing her chat with her friends.

_Two months after the incident with the bear, Venka had cornered him, before he could do anything, she had bound his body and mouth with magic. Taking him to the middle of the forest she hung him by the shirt on a tree, using magic to keep him there. It took him 6 hours to get down, at which point he had ripped his shirt. Angry, and ready to confront Venka he found her with Anya, who stared at him imperiously. Biting his anger, Faris simply walked away, ignoring Anya's mutterings about a "wild, unruly fool who knew not his place."_

His and Venka's relationship had taken a downward spiral since that day, likely her parents had scolded her like Anya had scolded him, and he earned her distaste, her pranks were solely on him, some benign, others malicious, enough to the point that their dynamic had shifted somewhat, with Venka being so proactive and Faris more on the backfoot due to the villager's and Anya's scrutiny, he had appeared as weaker to the kids, and had ended up being the target of assisted pranks by some of them. Many who just the same would come back the next day to play with him or ask for study help. After dinner ended and he helped wash up, he went upstairs to change.

_Just calm down Faris…_ Damien intoned, _she's leaving in a month, they'll escort her to the capital, she'll be out of your hair for a decade. You can learn more from Angela._

Faris looked out the window of his home. Dinner had been delicious, despite Venka's tasteless prank, and his dad had played his favorite song on a musical instrument which resembled a mandolin. It was a bit wider and had 7 cords, the lowest reaching the tones of a cello, and the highest reaching the tones of a violin. His father was a fantastic player, capable of strumming two separate rhythms at the same time. Faris smiled to himself as he remembered.

"Son, I know how much you like hearing the faungol, so I went to the carver and had this made for you."

_Faris had widened his eyes upon receiving the faungol, as opposed to his father's one which had a light reddish-brown complexion, his was a deep dark brown like an oak tree. On the bottom left side of its main body was his initials etched in. F. S. He had immediately begun to practice, it, and his father had even spent a bit of time into the late evening teaching him how to tune it, and even a minor and major, cord, after a bit of experimentation, he recreated part of a song, Farrell William's Happy, on the instrument, his father proclaiming him a genius, jokingly of course._

Faris turned to look at his faungol, which he had tenderly placed down in a box lined with his winter blanket. Smiling again he let his mind wander, entertaining the thought of becoming a famous faungol player, touring the cities, wooing the hearts and minds of the people. Sighing wistfully, he turned to disrobe and change. As he switched to a new pair of breeches and tunic, he turned too late to see a giant glob of mud fly into his room, smacking everything with mud.

_"…"_

_"…"_

Faris and Damien split for an instant before coming back together, as Faris marched towards the window he looked down to see Venka smirking at him, a few kids laughing.

"Why?! I've done nothing all this week?! You bitch!"

"Haha! Better be careful, the room's about to stink even more!" A second round of mud came flying through, breaking Faris's window and flooding his room. With a great creeping horror Faris's nostrils began being assaulted with the stench of a skunk as he saw it begin to claw its way through the mud. Even as the stench filled the room Faris turned his attention to the corner by his bed, digging through the muck he found his faungol, covered in mud, and ruined, it's stem snapped in half. On the same stand as the faungol had been the drawing he had been making, all of them ruined by the mud. He turned to see the skunk, which was growling at him as it turned to spray some more.

**_"_****_SLYTHA"_** He said, putting it to sleep. He tied the broken faungol to a pack he slung on his back, and turned to the skunk again. Picking it up by the scruff of its neck he unceremoniously tossed it outside, slowing down it's fall and waking it up in time to panic, spraying the kids. In the midst of their screams he grabbed his knife and leapt out the window to the ground 30 feet down, gripping his crystal he pocketed it. Charging the kinds. They had little time as he mercilessly punched and kicked, downing them in seconds before he turned to Venka. Without ceremony he smacked her twice.

"Ow! What the heck!" She yelled, rearing up to cast a spell, but before she could, he smacked her again, then again. Then he punched her in the gut, his eyes not losing their cold light.

"You… piece of utter garbage, waste of all my time, you destroyed my faungol, my father gave it to me for my 9th birthday because he knew I liked music." Venka's face paled.

"Hey… I'm sorry, I-I didn't m-mean to." She was interrupted by a harder smack, leaving a red welt on her face.

Tears streaming down Faris's face, he shouted, "IT WAS A GIFT GIVEN TO ME BY MY PARENTS! WHAT?! DID YOU THINK IT WAS OKAY TO DESTROY MY ROOM?! WHY?!" He uproar began to rouse people, who began to rush to the scene. Faris ignored them as he took out his knife and grabbed Venka's hair. "How would you like it if some piece of crap destroyed something you liked?"

Venka, panicking, grabbed at Faris's hands, attempting to stop him from cutting her hair. She widened her eyes at his strength, physical strength he had never used against her or the other kids ever.

"Oh?" Faris grinned, "Yeah, I could have really hurt you before… but I didn't 'cause I thought we could be friends, all I wanted was my space when needed. I don't want to get in trouble, I don't need to get to trouble either. Is it because of the dress you decided to destroy my room? Destroy my drawings, break my faungol? Was it because Anya scolded you, or your parents sent you to your room?! So, you wanted me to what? Cry?! The only coward here is you."

Venka attempted attacking Faris mentally, and he quashed that instantly.

_You can't even win in a physical fight, what makes you think I'll lose in a mental fight you-_

_Faris stop!_ Damien roared within his mind, exerting pressure to stop Faris's movements, Faris staggered a bit, losing his grip on Venka, who crawled away, running and cowering at a tree line. Before anything else could happen Faris felt the wind get knocked out of his lungs as his father tackled him and knocked the knife out of his hands.

"FARIS FADAWAR SER! WHAT IN BLAZES ARE YOU DOING?!"

Faris thought about struggling, but as he lay there, looking at his knife, covered in mud and grime, he began to cry, both in grief and rage, staring daggers at Venka as he did, who could only shake in shock at the 2 years of pent up rage in his eyes.


	14. Chapter 14

"You need to have better control over your son! He nearly killed our daughter!" Jean pointed a finger at Bergan, who angrily retorted.

"OH!? And you believe your daughter is innocent?! Do you know what I found when we entered our son's room? Mud and poison Ivy up to my chest. If he had been sleeping or taking a nap, he would have drowned! And this isn't the first time we've seen our son hurt and angry because of your daughter, you heard it from the children, your daughter has been abusing her magic to make my son's life a living hell, and because you and that…" he points to Anya, "and that stupid teacher take her side all the time, it boiled to this!" Anya glared at him but made no comment.

The shouting continued, the villagers split in decision, there were ones who only wanted to punish Faris, villages that produced exemplary mages would receive help in terms of extra supplies, trade, and the mage returning with wealth and riches enough to spread. The land would become more valuable, and the opportunity for knightage or even minor nobility wasn't out of the question. There was another group who was tired of Venka's actions, even before she focused solely on Faris, she had been the number one troublemaker in the village, and her magic and elevated status did little to help. As the villagers interrogated the children for what had been happening, their reactions had grown more and more shocked and flabbergasted at her nearly deranged actions. The only one unflinching was Anya, who simply glared at the orator, Faris kept his head down, half listening to the debates and half listening to Damien, who railed against him.

_You didn't have to lose your temper! Why did you lose your temper!? She could have snapped your neck at any time! Even with your crystal protecting you! And you know that!_

Faris kept silent until his father shook him on the shoulder. He looked up, seeing the serious faces of the adults.

"…Faris, like we were saying, what you did, wasn't excusable, raising a weapon against another villager, why didn't you come forward about the abuse, why did we have to hear about it now?"

Faris coughed a bit. "2 years ago, Venka and I came out of the forest, her dress slightly dirty, I covered in bruises and scratches. She… abused magic to mess with the rest of the kids, and I got her to stop harassing them. But she wanted to get back at me." He frowned, "She was normally careful to make sure it would be a he said/ she said scenario, where it's my word against hers and maybe Anya's." Anya stood up to protest.

"I gave no such direction to Venka! You-"

"ANYWAYS!" Faris yelled, drowning her out, "She would probably get away most of the time, and by the time I had a mind to stop her, half the village kids were in on it." He shook his head, looking at the kids, who mostly averted their gazes in guilt. "They were probably having stupid fun in my expense, Venka used to annoy them with her magic, but she won them over and got them to bully me, they wanted fun. And if I outed Venka by that point, I'd be ostracized as a…" He smirked, "A snitch, and even if all you parents believed me over your own kids, which you can't in this situation due to how all of you had to be gathered here, that would just make the rest of my time in the village miserable until we grew up enough that I could leave." He laughed, "And besides, it's a month before she heads to the capital isn't it? Even I thought she wouldn't be so stupid to try and pull something as drastic as almost killing me."

"I wasn't trying to kill you!" Venka shouted, standing up despite her father and mother's stern stares. Lips trembling, she looked around, everyone's eyes ranging from impassive to disdaining. "I wanted to mess with you… you, you're such a neat freak that I thought if I messed up your room you'd maybe."

"Maybe what, cry?!" Faris spat. "If I didn't cry when you left me hanging from a tree in that forest, if I didn't cry when you slipped snails, spiders, and centipedes down my neck when you and your friends held me down, if I didn't cry when you took my shoes, and when I found them later, they were dirty and covered in cow dung? So filthy that I had to walk home on the stony ground, tearing my feet, barefoot, you think I'd cry when you flood my room with mud?!" Bergan put a firm hand on Faris's shoulder. "You broke my faungol. I saved up, helped my mom and dad, and with the tiny allowance they afforded me when traders came in, I tried to buy a faungol, but I didn't have enough, so my parents got it, for me!" He emphasized by pointing at his chest. "They bought it for me!" Tears began blurring his face. "I took that thing whenever I could, as long as I knew I would be with it at all times, I'd take it and practice. You knew that Venka." He turned to her again. "You knew that, you didn't just aim for my room, you wanted to break me." He held his head up, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Well, you happy?!" Voice breaking, "You had one month left, and we'd be out of each other's hair, I haven't laid a finger on you for a year, no matter how bad I wanted to break your teeth in, but you took it as a sign that you were winning?"

"Ahem." Anya interrupted, "This… emotional outburst of yours doesn't take the fact away that you held a knife to-"

"If I wanted to kill her." Faris said, "Why is she not covered in a single scratch."

"Well… because of her wards." Anya began.

"What wards?!" Faris laughed, the villagers looked confused. "You remember one of the most famous stories of the Shade Slayer, The Dragon Rider Eragon Bromson. As he returned to the Varden, they accidentally shot a league of arrows at him, most were blocked, except for one, that he caught with his hand. I punched and kicked Venka, hard enough to bruise. Yet somehow you decided to use magic to block knife blows over fists? So, what if someone tried to choke her to death?!" Faris asked, glowering, "What the hell kind of teacher even are you?"

Jumping on this thread, a parent spoke up. "My son always complained that you were never teaching them, and that Faris was always helping him and the others understand, I never believed him, because I knew he thought Venka was bothersome, so I thought he was exaggerating. But seeing that brat act like this?! It shows me he and Faris were right!"

Other adults began talking, arguing with each other over who shared the most blame in this incident, it seemed that the lion's share of the blame however was falling to Anya, with even Jean confronting her.

"Just what have you been teaching my daughter?!"

Anya took on a calm face, smiling through her teeth as she calmly answered. "I apologize, it seems I may have overzealously paid attention to Venka. Though, you must also understand its importance. Venka's magic power is unprecedented, just spoiling her, which I seem to have done, is bad, an even worse occurrence could have come about, she could have lost control, and her magic could have seriously hurt someone." Anya holds her hands up, "I'm prepared to make reparations to Faris and his family over their foogle-"

"Faungol." Faris interrupted.

"Yes… **that…**" She hissed out. "I will make the reparations needed, but at the same time, perhaps we should deliberate in the morning, I will make the order for a delivery of gold, what say, 20 crowns per household, and 35 to the Ser family." She smiled as the villager's muttering stopped. 20 crowns were enough for 3 or so years for a family with three children and the grandparents on both sides. To be willing to offer this much gold for each household reminded them of how much state mages made.

A villager swallows, "Yes… perhaps we should, it is almost sundown." They began to leave, the last thing Faris saw before his father dragged him out of the meeting room was Anya's face, twisted in fury.


	15. Chapter 15

_How could you be so stupid!_

"How could you be so stupid!"

Faris quietly sat in a chair as both his father and Damien screamed at him for his stupidity and recklessness.

"I know you loved that Faungol, but it's just an instrument! A tool! I can replace it!"

_You could have gotten yourself killed! Venka could have snapped our neck like a chicken!_

"The villagers will ostracize you! I hate that they acted like this! But still! You allowed your emotions to cloud your judgment like this?!"

_They could have discovered the magic! Venka attacked you mentally! Once everything blows over, she'll get suspicious… then!_

"Your mother fainted son! You shocked and hurt her that much! I understand how much anger you had against Venka; I truly, really do, but you cannot let it get to you like that!"

"Do you dad?" Faris muttered, "She tormented me for 2 years, smug knowing I couldn't win if I came forward, this would have happened, but without her doing enough for anything to be said or done, and me being ostracized like I will probably be now." He closed his eyes, expecting his dad to smack or hit him. After a few seconds, he looked up to see a sad look on his father's face.

His father removed part of the smock covering his chest, revealing a deep burn scar across his chest, near the end of the burn scar was the final bits of a number, as well as some words taken from a mix of different dialects, dwarven, and even tiny bits of the ancient language. Faris felt his blood run cold as he stared at it.

"Your dad understands what you felt, more so even, but even then, following through on those actions is an empty road…"

Faris looked at his dad. "When were you going to tell me?"

"Probably never." Bergan responded, sighing, "My and your mother's past was… turbulent to say the least. Son, please, promise me you won't give in to such anger again."

Hesitatingly, Faris nodded his head. After a few more minutes of silence he got up, going to his room to slowly clean it.

_You… nearly got us killed._ Damien muttered.

Faris paused, then punched his head twice. _SHUT UP. How about you do something then? If you're so smart, how would you have handled the situation? She broke the Faungol, I could have handled anything else! I could have handled her attacking me. _He finished cleaning. Now he was tired, angry, and annoyed. He surveyed the room, the majority of his clothing, sheets, and parchments ruined. As he looked, he grew angrier, sighing, he went to bed, quieting his thoughts and attempting to reach a meditative state before he fell asleep.

_He turned and faced his partner in the dance, a young woman with long wavy black hair and violet eyes, who carried a sardonic grin on her face, yet her eyes were content at the very least. He danced with her for what felt like hours. At some point he lost her in the crowd. He began pushing past person after person trying to catch a glimpse of her again, he eventually tripped and fell. A long slender feminine hand reached for his to pull him up, looking up he saw a woman with fiery hair, bright green eyes, ruby red lips stretched into an impish smile._

"For fuck's sake!" Faris fell out of his bed, face beet red.

"Are you okay?" He heard his mom yell from across the hall. "What was that?"

"No! I-I'm okay, it was nothing." Faris replied sheepishly, thanking the heavens that the people of Alagaesia had some different curse words from those he grew up knowing, interestingly enough though, they had turd, arse, ass, and most humorously, bollocks. 10 paddles had taught him that lesson.

Sighing to himself Faris angrily slapped himself in the face to cool down and get his mind off any thoughts of V-

"Better yet I shouldn't think at all" He murmured quietly before almost swearing as a bit of his salty sweat got into his lash wound in his hand. His thoughts returned to Venka, but now on the pressing matter that he felt maybe she should pay for his wrongful punishment.

_No… ignore it, Faris, calm down, go back to bed. You hate her so much that she's literally invading your dreams, go back to bed._ Damien pressed.

_Wait._ Faris cocked his head, a tiny alarm bell began to ring. _That's my ward, my alarm ward, it's…_ He sighed, _It's the stuffed rabbit I let Venka keep._

_That's for magic detection, Faris, this is Venka we're talking about, she has magic, she uses magic._

_This isn't her magic, you know that._ Faris leaps from the roof, rolling as he lands. He sprints to her home. Venka's parents were loosely related to one of the nobles in the area, so they had a decent amount of wealth, which was the reason behind the mansion they lived in.

Immediately he could tell that something was wrong, the upstairs window to Jean and Aina's master bedroom was wide open, and the main foyer's lamp, which was in a glass, which their family always had on at night, was off, yet the candle was still inside and there was no sign of it being opened. Faris got a bad feeling, yet began to head inside. A quick 2 spells to quiet the door then one to muffle his footsteps drained a bit more out of him that he had anticipated, but he continued forward regardless, when he reached their kitchen area, he noticed the glint of a recently cleaned butcher's knife, with a bit of trepidation he grabbed it. A loud thump upstairs emboldened him to begin his march upstairs. The door to Venka's parent's room was open ajar, and moonlight came through it, bright enough to be seen in the hallway.

_Faris, we should-_

_No, we shouldn't if they're in danger I'm going to try and help._

Faris gulped as he crept forward quietly. Peering into the room he looked away in terror, fighting back the urge to puke. He may have had a dislike for Venka, but her parents had always been kind to everyone in the village. Tears began to glisten in his eyes, blurring his vision. He heard another thump coming from Venka's room. Cold dread began to fill him up, a chill originating from his spine all the way up to his ears caused him to spasm slightly, and his stomach felt empty yet clogged up. As he crept towards Venka's room, Faris gripped the knife tightly, his knuckles turning white from the effort. As he looked into Venka's room he almost couldn't believe his eyes. It was Anya, but a little different, she was now cloaked in a billowing robe, wielding a wand in one hand. A bloodied dagger in the other hand. Her head was completely bald, a blond wig lying to the side. She looked down contemptuously at the figure lying before her, a terrified, crying Venka.

"Stupid child!" Anya hissed, "Ever since you let that common boy get under your skin you've been growing wilder and wilder, if not because of your prestige, I would have killed everyone the second that child came out of the forest with your failure of a self!"

Faris narrowed his eyes. This was against state magician law, a mage shouldn't and couldn't attack innocents. Anya struck Venka across the face with the pommel of her dagger, the girl screamed in pain.

"I came to this backwater muck town because of your magic, but it seems I let my senses be overtaken. She's near, she's been here, I should have assumed it whenever I saw that black werecat." She bit her thumbnail, angrily thinking, "How is she still here! Why hasn't she attacked me yet! She should have realized by now!"

_Realized what?_ Faris thought.

"Dammit! Now that this has happened. I can't stay here anymore, I'll have to return, but you're coming with me, you're a stupid girl, but your magic power is useful enough, perhaps cutting you open will reveal those secrets."

Venka whimpered in fear and pain. "I want my mommy…."

Anya laughed and grabbed Venka by the hair, Faris panicked and began backing out and crept behind the door. He heard Venka cry out in terror as Anya yanked her forward, he saw them enter her parents' room. What followed was the sound of a choking sob that tore at Faris, blinded by rage he took out the butcher knife. He bound into the room, Anya was completely unawares, but caught his shadow from the light, turning her head just as Faris' knife plunged into her face, only to bounce off her wards in futility. Anya turned around to see Faris and lifted her hand, she began chanting a few short words and Faris began to feel hot as his energy rapidly drained, faster than it ever had in his life. In his desperation he connected to Venka, who looked up in confusion as he took some energy from her, the energy was huge, larger than he had remembered earlier, if he could put it in a size comparison, if he was a lit match, and Anya a small campfire, she was a literal volcano.

Anya's face contorted in confusion when Faris did not explode in a hail of fire. Then twisted into a mix of horror and hatred when a dresser was launched into her like a charging bull, brass knobs first, it did not break through the wards but weakened it enough that Faris was confident enough to throw his butcher knife at her, she on reflex lifted her arms to block it, confident her wards would save her. Her face twisted into an even deeper mask of horror as Faris screamed out.

"Galdr iet stál, ramr mïnen daert, finna auga!" (Strengthen my steel, strong deadly blade. Find her eye!)

The blade pierced her defenses, slicing clean through her right hand and hitting her in-between her eyes. It wasn't a deep cut at all, and she reached her remaining hand over to remove it.

"Bjartr bleikr ignasia! Drjugr Ramr titlingr! Istalri!" He screamed, grabbing Venka and covering her eyes before bolting out of the room. The blade caught on fire, it was a light grey, almost silver color, and the metal began to grow very bright, illuminating everything in extreme detail.

Anya screamed something out and his back felt hot as the room erupted in flames, bypassing parts of his defense, he covered Venka with his body as the flames burned him, pushing her out of the room with him, with them both running down the steps, he could hear the banshee like cries of Anya as she attempted to kill him and Venka, but he had already warded both of them as best he could. She had no choice but to chase after them. As the children bolted out of the house the flames erupted from the top of the mansion with a loud whoosh and angry crackling, shouts of panic could be heard all around the village, the mansion was a little further out from the town but most of the houses still had wooden roofs, if the wind caught the flames…

"Momma! Papa!" Venka sobbed, Faris looked at her with a mix of pity and sadness. This was his fault, and he needed to atone for it.

"Waíse heill" He whispered, mending her bruises and curing the pain, he had almost no energy left, yet her magical reserves seemed only somewhat touched by the entire ordeal.

"I, I'm so sorry Venka." He whispered. "But we have to go! We can't let her find us here, she could destroy more of the village!"

She continued her sobbing, ignoring him.

"Please! You're strong enough to stop her!" Faris pleaded with her. But Venka made no change, Faris simply grabbed her arm and began running, she followed after him, stumbling a few times, by now they had entered the forest, Anya on hot pursuit. The cries of the villagers could be heard now, panicking as they began to try and fight the fire.

As Faris and Venka continued deeper into the forest he began to hear Anya's voice echoing around.

"You were foolish to enter here child. But… I'm surprised a boy your age would know such words; I will take pleasure tearing them from your mind."

Faris ignored her voice, but Venka whimpered. Tearing up again, Faris looked at her. "Venka, please, I need you to be strong. Please!"

_Shit!_ He thought as the tree behind him blew up. He grabbed Venka and dove into some shrubs as Anya stumbled into the clearing.

"I'll have to hand it to you, I don't know how you bypassed my wards, your light and this, sound I hear make it hard to concentrate, it makes me feel frustrated enough to find your parents and kill them, you wouldn't want that would you?"

"You're just bluffing" Faris said. Anya blasted the tree behind her, in a completely different direction from them. After a few moments she scowled.

"I can and will annihilate your entire town after this is over, if you surrender now, I'll give them a painless death."

Faris did not get up. He needed to exhaust her a little more, if he could get her weak enough that she could no longer use her wards, then they could win, all he had to do was wait. He turned to his right to see how Venka was doing. Only to see she was missing, he reached out in a panic, alerting Anya to his mind. She began to attack him mentally, striking like a jackhammer, instead of trying to pierce whatever defenses he had, she instead merely tried to break them down. Any other moment Faris would have wiped the floor with her in a mental duel, her technique was strong but inefficient, but he had three handicaps, he was in almost debilitating pain from the burns, which would have taken too long to heal with Anya chasing after him, and if he attacked back, she might glimpse that he was spent and had gained the energy to fuel his wards and spells through Venka, who he was not connected to at the moment. Even then, it was a bit more akin to a stalemate, though he had the slight advantage in their mental struggle. That was of course until she found the bush he had been in and kicked him in the stomach. He barely kept up his defenses as he now began to fight for his life, grabbing for her knife hand. He missed, but so did she, burying it deep in the ground, he took this opportunity to smash a rock into her face, disorienting her, she unconsciously lifted a hand and launched a fire ball at him, which he barely leaped out of the way from. Her mind had tensed for retaliation, then confusion when none came forward, he swung at her with a big stick before she could put her thoughts together, she narrowed her eyes and reached forward to grab him, he struck her in the throat as hard as he could, getting her to double down into his raised knee.

She cast a spell, pinning him in the air, and grabbed her dagger, ready to plunge it into his eye when a ball of water compressed enough to be as solid as concrete crashed into her back. She growled and turned around to see Venka wielding 20 of these watermelon sized water balls. She began launching them at Anya, who tried dodging one after the other before one smacked her right in the face, breaking several bones, Anya raised her remaining arm, getting it twisted in an unnatural angle as the last aqua ball shot into it and buried itself slightly into her chest. The ball of water shattered as that occurred, causing Venka to give a double take as Anya ripped off her robe, revealing an exoskeleton like armor. Anya raised her wand and cast a spell at Venka, who screamed as a wall of fire attempted to bypass the wards Faris had set up and burn her to a crisp.

"Die child! Perish like your useless parents." Anya crowed as she continued her barrage of fire, the jewel in her wand glowing.

Faris used this lapse in concentration on her part to spread his mind to the animals in the vicinity, one animal in particular he had been keeping tabs on.

"Moi hugr" (change mind) he croaked, feeling his head slump forward, he was nearly spent, yet didn't feel tired, or in pain, just sleepy. But his spell had done its job. Anya was too absorbed in her victory to realize the half ton bear crashing through the foliage and slamming into her until too late, her wand knocked out of her hand she began to fight in vain as the bear tore into her, before she screamed out one of the thirteen words of death. The bear collapsed on the spot, dying tragically. Faris reached his mind to the bear, it had died, but the majority of its energy remained, he took it all in, as much as he could, all to cast his spell. He began to connect to all the plants in the clearing.

"Havr!" (possess)

The vines and branches moved to surround Anya, who was caught by surprise by this sudden onslaught, Faris took this opportunity to finally break past her defenses, and tear into her mind, he was not gentle in the slightest as he tore into it, every time she attempted to cast a spell in retaliation, he was quicker.

"Jierda" (break)

Her screams of agony where his symphony; any second in which he had felt he would falter, he thought of Venka's parents. He doubled his efforts, learning everything she knew, and when he finished, he prepared his spell, he let Anya realize what it was, let her realize what he planned, and in her panicked fear she begged for his mercy. Her words fell on deaf ears as Faris uttered…

"Jierda Hugr"

Anya's mouth opened slack, and a mix of drool and blood flowed out of it as she collapsed on the floor, comatose. Faris looked down at her in disgust and hate, whether more towards himself or her, he didn't know. He turned to look at Venka, who stared at him dumbfounded, teary eyed, and more than a little fearful.

He looked at her and gave a sad smile, tears finally glistening as he cried his apologies, before collapsing on the floor. Leaving Venka as the only one awake and able to do anything as a large shaggy black cat with glowing red eyes, followed by a teenage girl with violet eyes and wavy black hair crashed into the clearing.


	16. Chapter 16

"You know, I keep coming back to you bedridden and covered in bandages, that's a terrible habit, I'd recommend that you stop." Angela quipped, knitting a pair of wool mittens.

"Nice to see you too Angela." Faris croaked. After a few seconds, he tentatively asked, "how is…?"

"How is she, she's sleeping right now, the poor girl needs it, it's a good thing you had been by her house." Angela peers at her. "Why did you come by her house anyway?"

Faris turned red, "I sensed an alarm magic, so I investigated and…"

Angela chuckled, "You don't need to talk about it." She frowns. "About the woman, Anya, who attacked-"

"She's one of the remnants of Black Hand" Faris interrupted, staring at the ceiling. "I, I got it from her mind"

"Before you destroyed it." Angela stared hard at Faris for a bit, before asking. "How old were you before you died Faris?"

"Sixteen" Faris replied.

Her face softened a bit. "Here, 16 is the age of adulthood. But that is still very much the age of a child. Are… how are you?"

"Well enough" Faris began bitterly. "Well enough for a fool and a murderer." He turned to face the wall.

"But you didn't kill her." Angela began.

Faris sat up quickly. "I sure as heck basically did! I destroyed her mind! I-I could have captured her, made her swear in the ancient language to surrender, I had her under my power… yet I…" tears began to well up in his face.

"Faris… you saved Venka's life, and you made the brave and tactical decision of moving away from the rest of the villagers, Anya brought it on herself, the Black Hand remnants are a nasty group, they partnered with the remaining priests of Helgrind, the reason I left you in the Urgal village was because I began to hear telling of towns being taken over by them, townspeople becoming deranged Cultists. The fact one of their members was able to seamlessly pass into the State Mage society is troubling, and exactly why I had problems with the thing in the first place." Angela lets out a disgruntled huff. "Honestly this is too much sometimes."

Faris remained silent, Angela's words of comfort had helped a bit, but he was more concerned over what she said about the Black Hand and Helgrind worshipers combining. He closed his eyes, and went over the strongest memories he had taken from Anya.

_Her breath was ragged as she and five other companions ran in the darkness of the night, the sound of footsteps and shouting was hot on their heels as they ran for their lives. Galbatorix had been their king, their god, their teacher, their father, and he had been slain. The murderer supposedly had the ability to remove from them their most binding oaths to their hallowed king. But forever they would spurn him, choosing instead to plot this kingdom's downfall, and take as many with them as possible to the grave, as a memorial to their king. _

_They made it out of Teirm safely, too easily in fact, and their fears were realized when they found themselves face to face with over 20 Spell Casters from the former Varden, led by Trianna, the appointed head of the State Mage organization. How Anya hated her, she had been responsible for the death of her brother, Samson, and she dearly wished it had just been them alone, she would have made short work of her._

_"Surrender yourselves to the Broddring Kingdom." Trianna declared haughtily._

_"Never!" Another Black Hand member hissed back before casting a wide area fire spell. As the spell went off 3 of the State Mages perished, another 2 fainted from the use of wards to protect themselves. Almost as instantly as the State Mages collapsed did the offending Black Hand member begin to experience his limbs rotting away slowly, he began to scream out for help but to no avail he melted into a pile of black sludge._

_"Attack!" Trianna declared, taking out a sword, another seven of the mages took out various melee weapons._

_In counter the 4 remaining Black Hand Members took out a collection of daggers, short swords, whips, and staffs. As their bodies clashed so too did their minds. The Mages who couldn't fight were in the back, doubling their efforts to weed away at the Black Hand Member's might. But this group was different, the other sparse groups the Varden encountered were disorganized and disoriented, these men and women had a combined purpose and combined will, they in fact held their own in extreme fashion, both in combat and in the mental duel. Anya felt joy amongst her fellows, glad that together they would destroy this unit. As they fought, she allowed Trianna to stab her in the stomach, she had already prepared the spell deadening her nerves. Smiling, she moved to decapitate the leader of the State Mages when another State Mage stepped in, dying in her stead. This created a trend, the Black Hand began taking the lead, the tempo was in their favor as the Du Vrangr Gata began losing one member after another, until it became a 3 on 4 fight, in the Black Hand's favor, the other members dead or injured. Trianna was bleeding from her left arm, which she had used to shoulder a dagger wound, and was likely beginning to feel the effects of its Paralytic poison. Another mage had a bleeding stump where his left hand used to be, a sword laced in Seithr Oil was the culprit. Anya smiled viciously; this was the first step in their comeback. At least it was until he came._

_It was a blur of black hair, flashing eyes and brilliant swordplay as an elf wielding a simple yet elegant broad sword waltzed into the battle field, in a single blow he cut through the blade of one Black Hand member before the blade continued its course offing the man's head. A second flick of the wrist sent the tip of the blade into the shoulder of another member, who was forced to drop his dagger. Anya and her last remaining partner Yauzon backed away. They were filled with hate, envy, and dread as they stared down the elf that had been the bane on the existences of any Black Hand members trying to survive alone._

_"Elf Ambassador Vanir" Trianna began, curtsying slightly. "Thank you for coming to our aid, though you do not need too."_

_"Nonsense" Vanir stated while smiling, "My predecessor our current queen Arya helped you in your fight against the mad king, I at the very least should be capable of helping cleaning up his leavings."_

_Anya felt an impotent rage, they had barely slipped past his guard before, only escaping because of an emergency elsewhere. Yet this time they were doomed, with no escape._

_"Anya…." Yauzon began before handing her an orb. "GO!"_

_A flash of red light furled around Anya as she was teleported to a dark room, several figures surrounded her, some dressed in similar attire, others in outlandish religious finery, while also missing various limbs. A man, who was little more than a portly head and torso stated somberly, "I welcome you to our base of operations, the means by which you got here means that Yauzon has been lost." He smiled, but of course, he'd only sacrifice if he considered you a more valuable asset than he had been. And even then…" He gestured to a figure sitting in the darkness. The figure opened their eyes, revealing scarlet eyes that glowed cruelly, moving forward to revealed long hair just as red and skin as pail as moonlight._

_Anya felt a chill as the Shade brought herself closer. She was unnaturally beautiful, and insanely powerful. Anya had worked with Durza and recognized the repugnant evil of the magic, yet this being was even greater, likely stronger than Durza at the same scale to which Durza was stronger than her or any other human mage. She felt chills up her spine as she looked at the Shade, these chills were mixed with hope and a desperate victory. The Shadeslayer, for all his power, couldn't possibly face her, she was a power comparable to the mad king himself. This would be their conqueror, their Valkyrie, their avenger._

_The shade inspected Anya for a moment more, before smiling charmingly, a movement that disarmed Anya, who a split second later began to scream in pain as the shade broke her arm. The shade cocked her head, listening to the screams with an air of disinterest._

_"Hmmm, that's no fun, you had cast a spell removing your pain, I wondered whether it could stop me. Too bad…" She sighed despondently. Anya, despite her pain, felt an even greater sadness, despairing that her spell had not been to the woman's satisfaction. She began to wonder why she suddenly cared so much about what the Shade thought, then dismissed it._

_"My lady, I am sorry my body was too weak for you."_

_"No… it is alright." The Shade smiles again. "We can always try again, and again, and again, would you like that?"_

_"Yes! Yes!" Anya spoke, tears in her eyes, all of a sudden it seemed like everything in her life revolved around giving in to the Shade's whims._

_The Shade smiled even wider, filling Anya's heart with joy, even as her arm continued to throb._

_"Tell me your name, I swear that we shall avenge Galbatorix"_

_Who? Anya thought, before answering to her queen. "My lord, I am Anya"_

_"Thank you, welcome to the Scarlett Heart Anya, we are Jahat"_


	17. Chapter 17

Faris sighed in discontent. Bergan, that was the third man's name, had been rude and patronizing to Venka the second they got into the cart. Faris had held Venka's hand in solidarity, and she squeezed it subconsciously whenever Bergan gave another of his winning quips.

"How's your hand?" Bergan asked innocently.

I hate you, Faris thought, shivering in the cold of the Spines.

"Well?" He asked.

"It's alright, she only dislocated my pinky." Faris replied evenly as he stared down Bergan, imagining dislocating a few things himself. They had decided to stop here for tonight, the two Investigators had been adamant they continue on but Bergan stated the driver needed rest, he'd gotten them there to the town without rest, and looked like he could collapse at any moment, which would be dangerous in these mountain ranges.

"Oh, wow, what did you do to make her mad?"

Faris gave Bergan a look that sent the older man into a fit of laughter. Faris could only sigh in exasperation. For a man his age, Bergan acted quit juvenile. He had a thick brow and straight nose, and his jaw was lined with a salt and pepper style of stubble, his hair as well showed a bit of his age, showing greying on the sides just above his ears.

"You didn't ask me to keep watch with you just to exchange pleasantries, right?" Faris asked, turning his attention back to the road.

"What? Are you saying you don't like me?" Bergan replied with mock hurt in his voice.

Faris resisted rolling his eyes as he replied. "As far as first impressions go, on a scale of 1 to 10, I'd give you a 3. And don't treat me so naively, I'm aware that I'm not going to have a fun time at your magic school."

Bergan scratched his head, "That'd be true, slytha"

Crap Faris thought as he backed away from Bergan and pulled out a dagger.

"Stay back" He said with ferocity, holding the dagger tightly.

"Hmmm, not bad form, you know how to use a dagger at least." Bergan replied, looking on casually. "Though I'm a bit surprised, a normal person would have died from that.

"Liar, that means sleep" The words escaped Faris' mouth before he could stop himself. He covered his mouth in anger.

Bergan gave a sly smile. "I listened to the investigators' accounts of everything that happened according to the villagers and the girlie over there. That girl doesn't know enough of the ancient language to ward herself, and she's certainly not skilled enough mentally to win a mage's duel against someone like Anya, especially given what we know about her now."

Faris narrowed his eyes. Bergan was a shrewder man than he had given credit, he'd not make that mistake again.

"Hey don't go staring daggers at me." Bergan stated mockingly. "I'm sure you know if I thought you were my enemy; I would have taken care of you already."

Faris remained unflinching. Bergan eventually sighed, scratching his head.

"All right kid look, two kids? Beating a mage who specialized in assassination? No one's gonna believe that. Their gonna tear into your head to find everything that happened, and they won't care how they hurt you, Venka's the niece of a Lord, and her magic amount makes her almost as valuable as a Rider, but they won't care if they scar you, most of them don't even want you coming."

"I'm a tough nut to crack" Faris replied. "Unless you'd like to have a go at me now to find out."

"Oh, I believe you, I believe you very much, I just need to know, who's your teacher? A relative, a villager, your parents?"

Faris remained silent.

"Angela?"

Faris widened his eyes slightly before returning them normal. But Bergan's eyes narrowing was confirmation to his worse fears.

"Now look kid- argh!" Bergan's face contorted in pain as Faris' mind attacked his with reckless abandon, the boy charged at the mage, dagger in hand.

Bergan barely side stepped Faris' wild attack before kicking him hard in the gut, Faris dropped, and his mental attack subsided, Bergan though noted with approval that the child still had his mind warded even after taking such a blow, he was well trained.

Bergan leaned on his knees with exhaustion, and switched to the ancient language.

_"I assume you can understand me, right? I'm neither of your enemies, and I am not here for Angela-svit-kona, nor am I trying to extort anything out of you."_

Faris lowered his knife, and got up groaning. "Fine, I believe you, what do you want?"

"I want to help you, I owe Angela a favor, and I suspected she may have something to do with the village, that's why I came here myself, as opposed to any number of other mages known for being good at healing. And, I wanted to see."

"Wanted to see what?" Faris asked curiously.

"I wanted to see what Angela saw in you, frankly, I'm pretty impressed, you have piss poor magical ability, but if your mental fortitude is anything to go by, and by how you handled Anya, I think you're not half bad, you're smart enough to not just stand there and struggle mentally against me, and you were somehow able to hide your magical aptitude against the scanner, or else you'd have been given similar attention to Venka." Bergan smiled and cocked one eye. "Let's say it turns out over this trip, you accidentally 'discover' you have magical ability, its piss poor yes, but your aptitude should more than make up for it, and someone as smart as you should probably have a gem or two lying around."

Faris' mind flashed to a thought of his quartz collection, he insisted he take it for sentimental value, but thought it might be better not to reveal any in front of Bergan, 5 years of magical storage wasn't much, but it was, good, more than good, for him.

"Anyways kid, I'm here to help you, so calm down."

"Alright, then what's your plan." Faris stated dryly.

"Well, nothing really, I wanted to see how well you could do, I don't feel you need magical training. So that's it. I'm just saying it was discovered that I discovered you could use magic."

"And it's that easy?" Faris asked incredulously.

"I don't think you have a high opinion of me, I'm actually quite a respected mage." Bergan replied smugly.

Faris rolled his eyes. "Alright then. If we are done here, we should have been relieved ages ago."

Bergan frowned, "They should have contacted me mentally."

Faris began to run back towards their camp spot, dagger ready. Bergan was in hot pursuit. They reached the edge of the clearing, finding one of the investigators sluggish, and one unresponsive.

"They've been drugged." Bergan began.

"Anya's missing!" Faris hissed back, inspecting the campground for any signs of intrusion, he noticed a tree had been bent badly. Like a strong force had pushed it forward. He grabbed his back of quartz and began to sprint in the direction of the tear, spreading his mind to the animals awake, the general consensus was a large amount of people sized things moving through, one of them was struggling against the group. Faris redoubled his efforts, blazing away from Bergan. His pace was that of a person attuned with this forest all his life, and he was barely slowed by the darkness or the foliage. He eventually crashed into a figure, who grunted in annoyance and pain. Without skipping a beat Faris overtook the man, bypassed his wards and put him to sleep. As he did, he made sure to drain a good deal of his energy and add it to his stone. The second mage was unable to react to the speed of the situation and ended up in the same position, the third mage tried putting up mental defenses but was blown away by Faris' ferocity, Faris didn't even go into the pleasantries of casting sleep, simply choosing to smash a rock into the man's groin with impunity. A sword stopped short of his face, draining all his energy, which he replenished from his quartz. He smashed his stone into the user's hand, their wards clashed, Faris drained his stamina 12 timed before he finally overcame the mage's wards and own stamina.

Oh, that mage was pretty weak. He thought as he knocked him out. Grabbing his sword, he barely raised it in time to block the dagger coming towards his face. The dagger had cut into his wards and drained the last of his quartz stone, which he threw to the side. There were 9 mages left, 3 of them split off, with the 6 remaining smiling nastily at Faris.

"Not so strong without your pretty rock eh?" He crowed.

"True, but I like keeping pretty rocks." Faris replied nonchalantly as he willed the second quartz rock to his hand. The mages frowned, and began to attack him mentally, while trying to strike him down physically. Faris could not compete at the same level physically, so he relied on his wards to block their blows while he went for quick attacks to knock them down. Their mental attacks were just as deadly, two of them seemed to attempt to coil around his mind, attempting to squeeze down on it, while one hammered at the same point, attempting to shift him off balance. The other three seemed to pool their minds to form a sword like point, to try and cleave past his defenses and any weak points he may have had. Faris for the most part envisioned his mind as a dense sphere, like the core of a star. They struck like waves against a castle wall, attempting to find purchase through any crack left unfilled, and gap left unbricked. He was losing, in a last-ditch effort Faris took out two more of his stones. The most magic his body could handle was maybe 100, 150 times his natural amount.

Any more and I might actually die.

If he were to consider the magical stamina of an average nonmagical adult (everyone had a bit), each stone, having about 300 days' worth of his magical energy per stone, was equal to maybe 10 adults, or two average magic users. Or one-one thousandth of Venka's.

_Life isn't fair._ He thought as he began casting his magic. He was interrupted by 3 of the magicians falling limply to the ground, and the other three writhing in pain before becoming still. He turned to Bergan, breathing heavily and steadily holding out his emerald, which now glowed a bright green.

"Go!" He shouted. "Don't let them get away!"

Faris began to sprint quickly. He poured energy into a spell that increased his movements for a short amount of time, blurring his crash through the forest. Within seconds, the second of his stones were drained of energy, then the third, and even the fourth. By the time he reached the remaining fleeing mages, he had used half the energy of his remaining stone, 5 years of energy storage, wasted on one night, he truly was weak. But he had no time to be dejected as he stabbed one of the mages, he had been moving too quickly for the mage's wards to stop his blade, and a quick bash to the skull kept the mage from being able to retaliate. The quartz stone, his life line, had its reserves drop to what was the equivalent of ten days left of magic as the mages shot fire ball after fire ball at him. Instead of barreling through, he cast a spell forcing the smoke still as he used it as cover and ran into a bush to recuperate and form a plan.

"Did we get him?" The first mage whispered to the other.

"Idiot! Did you see a body?" The second hissed in anger. "Damnable boy!" He continued, he killed Erfran first! How did he know Erfran had the teleportation orb!"

Faris had felt an odd energy similar to Anya's on the first mage he took down, he was glad he followed his hunch. He began to slowly formulate his plan, the last reserves of his magic draining in accordance. He rummaged his back pack, finding a purple flower, and a grass ship. Whispering some words in the ancient language he fused the two together and sent the ship off, it flew by taking minute energy from the plants around and flew low, its objective was to stay out of anyone's line of sight, approach whatever target he chose, then deliver its deadly payload.

"Anyways we better-"

The first man was interrupted by a fit of coughing as the smoke suddenly blew in his direction. His and the other mages panicked cries were followed by the screaming of spells of death at the area the smoke originated from. This distraction allowed Faris' ship to reach them. Faris had chosen not to meet their minds, instead connecting to Venka, where he cast a spell of warding on her, fueled by her power of course. The second thing he had done was begin to collect the oxygen and force it to gather closer below the men's faces, the air would have undoubtedly begun to feel thinner, which he distracted them from by using the smoke. They naturally lower their heads, and ended up taking whiffs of the purple soldier. The purple soldier was a pretty flower, but it was even more deadly, its pollen carried a powerful narcotic hallucinogen, and if that wasn't bad enough, it was highly flammable.

"Thank you, Angela." He whispered as he stood out from his cover, pointed his fingers at the men, and yelled, "Bang! Brisingr!"

Faris would later on go on record stating he underestimated the amount of oxygen he gathered, because he wanted to make a thorough job of it, he overestimated the Mages' intelligence levels, as instead of attempting to get away from or pushing away the fire, they instead cast more flames into the mix, and he did not judge the situation correctly, but then again, he would argue, "it's not fair to expect me to know where every batch of purple soldiers grow now is it?" Regardless, the explosion wiped out a huge chunk of the forest, and would have killed him if Bergan hadn't arrived and use up his Emerald to save them both.

"God damn kid! That was amazing! How did you do that?!" Bergan asked amazed, while patting out his singed clothing.

But Faris didn't worry about that, he needed to find Venka, make sure she was okay. The sound of the explosion still left his ears ringing, Venka had been right next to it.

He ran into the smoking crater finding bits and pieces of cloth and… other things, He began to panic, until he heard a girl call out his name. He ran through a pile of smoke to see Venka, completely unharmed by the entire ordeal. He ran towards her, only to be smacked in the face.

As he fell and looked up at her, he saw she was crying, and shivering.

"Never again!" She screamed at him. "Don't leave me ever again!"

Faris flinched in fear as she approached him, but relaxed slightly as it turned into a hug. He hugged her tightly as well, letting her scream her obscenities and insults over his general incompetence until the exhaustion of the entire ordeal finally won out and she slumped asleep in his arms. Two years of animosity melted out of Faris as he stared at her tear streaked face, eyes shut tight.

"Holy…" Bergan began, patting out the few burn marks on his lavish clothing. "She's completely unharmed! I doubt even elves could handle an explosion of this level unscathed. We absolutely cannot let the Black Hand take her, this is the second time such an attack has reached us, we need to regroup, and rethink our strategy."

He walked over to Faris, who was still holding tightly on to Venka. After one look he yanked her out of his arms, stifling his protest with the fact that Faris could barely stand himself, let alone make a several mile trip while carrying someone almost as heavy as he was. Faris conceded to his logic eventually, and together they made their trip, taking a detour now. Their destination was no longer Ilrea, that was too far for them to even entertain to making it by foot, Faris couldn't use the teleportation spell because he had no idea where the blasted city was, and Bergan likely didn't know the spell, or they'd have been there as soon as they left, so they had to leave to the nearest major city, Carvahall.


	18. Chapter 18

The two state Mages were able to recover, as while they had been drugged, their wards held up, which ultimately saved their lives. The coach driver hadn't been so lucky. Faris and Venka had insisted they give the man a grave. The investigators wanted them to move out quickly. Bergan had been the final vote, siding with Faris and Venka. Faris noticed the man had a locket, so he took it, resolving to find out if the man had any kin. After burying the man, they decided to try and find the horses who had scattered, they ended up finding three of them, the fourth had unfortunately been lost to wolves, Bergan took one horse and placed Venka behind him. While Faris sat behind one of the investigators, he was the shorter of the two, and had a very self-satisfied look about him at all times, they didn't give their names, stating that such things had power, thus they would only give it to those they trusted. Faris wished he could attempt to humor them, but he just couldn't care. As far as he was concerned, they had been completely useless, and if they had gotten their way earlier and took Venka with them back to Ilrea without him and Bergan, she would have been in the clutches of the Black Hand, who'd be doing god knows what with her. He shivered, remembering Jahat, she was terrifying and beautiful at the same time, like a vengeful goddess, yet she had looked somewhat familiar, he could not pin down why though.

Their trip into Palancar Valley was uneventful, paranoia kept them from sleep, but they were fortunately unhurt from their trip, likely because of the failure of the last ambush. Venka had taken some convincing that she shouldn't sit on a horse with Faris, as neither of them knew how to ride, and they couldn't force one to hold three people if they wanted to make it on time. As they reached the curve over one of the most northern of the mountains, Faris could only whistle in awe.

"He's a man of his word."

One of the investigators turned his head in annoyance. "What are you talking about?!"

"Nothing important," Faris replied dryly before turning his attention back to the thriving city before him. Carvahall was a much more impressive location than it had been before. A massive stone wall, several feet thick and several dozen feet tall surrounded the wall, 4 huge watch towers were placed on each of cardinal directions, with 8 smaller watch towers further out. Even from the distance Faris could make out the gigantic bells on the top of the watchtowers, likely for warning the inhabitants of eminent battle. Humans moved about quickly to and from a large gate under one of the cardinal watch towers, and he could see a flurry of movement underneath the two other watchtowers whose bases were visible to him.

As they got closer, he noticed that the people were in the midst of preparing a festival or celebration of some sort, men and women dressed in festive garments, children dressed in matching blue and gold colors ran about excitedly. Faris' group, disheveled as it was, was able to pass into the crown until they reached the gate, where Bergan approached a soldier, who after an exchange of words beckoned a few more soldiers over to escort them into the city. Faris whistled in in appreciation as they got down from their horses, which were led to the stables.

"Oh? You're impressed right?" A soldier stated, smiling brightly. "Carvahall is the second most secure city in the Broddring Kingdom!" He proclaimed with pride.

"No thanks to you." Another soldier quipped, jabbing him in the ribs with his elbow. His fellows chuckled in agreement.

Faris looked around in appreciation of the logistic marvel that was the city. The outer wall was the strongest, followed by an inner wall, then a mote surrounding the castle, with Farmland in between the walls. The most impressive thing was the large and wide buildings, which had gardens on the roofs. The second most impressive things were the ways many of the buildings were lined, forcing anyone into running into the maze-like corridors between some buildings. Leading to a wide courtyard surrounding the innermost wall and mote, 3 draw bridges arranged with even spread. Around the castle, and what a castle it was. The largest building Faris ever remembered seeing was a trip to the Coliseum due to his parent's business deal that they decided to bring him along to. The castle was maybe one and a half times wider and twice as tall. When Roran had stated he would make a hall big enough for Saphira to roost, he wasn't kidding. The most amazing thing though was the suspension bridges connecting the Castle to each of the 4 watch towers from the top.

Noticing his gaze upward, the same boasting soldier proudly declared.

"Duke Stronghammer commissioned a combined work with the Dwarves and Elves, as a gift due to his exploits from the War, this city is nigh indestructible, and despite the wind strength from that high up, those Bridges are as stable as you could ask for."

"Thanks for the history lesson." Bergan stated dryly. "But please, we need to speak with the Duke."

"We are heading to the Duke as we speak sir."

"But we aren't heading towards the castle." Venka said with curiosity. Sticking close by Faris.

"Oh, in fact we are young lady" An older solder spoke, rubbing his stubble.

They understood what they meant as they approached what looked to be a raised podium, in front of the podium was a crowd of men working together to lift and raise up a large carriage, full of fruits. As the men worked together to raise it another group of men fitted a large wooden wheel into one of the spokes, replacing a broken one that lay at the side. As they got closer, they could hear a conversation.

"My lord I cannot thank you enough, if you hadn't intervened I would a' never been able to take all the fruits up to the hall." A villager prostrated himself before a tall muscular shirtless man sporting stylish brown hair and a stylish beard. The man helped the villager up and smiled.

"Come on, I was only one of the people who lifted up the wagon, the rest deserve more thanks than me." He leaned in a said quietly, "Eh… if you can spare a basket's worth of fruits though, my daughter loves them." Before giving a hearty laugh and sending the smiling villager off with his carriage.

Bergan walked forward and bowed to the man, he stood a good 6 feet evenly, and was of a build akin to that of a WWE wrestler, or MMA fighter. The rest of the group followed suit as the man appraised them with his warm blue eyes.

"I see much has happened to your group, from your appearance and clothing I assume you are State Mages straight from Ilrea right?"

Bergan nodded. "We had a bit of trouble on the way."

The man nodded, beckoning a soldier who walked over and handed him a simple white tunic. After placing it on, he turned. "Come! Come join me for dinner. There's a lot we need to discuss it seems."

"Thank you, my Duke." Bergan nodded, before turning to everyone else. "Alright gents, you heard what Duke Stronghammer said, let's get a move on."

Faris' arm by this point had gotten sore from being clutched by Venka's this entire time, and his face reddened remembering the stairs the villagers gave them as they travelled towards the castle. As they reached the castle gates, soldiers lined up asking them to open their packs and reveal any weapons or questionable substances they had on them. The only thing Venka had was a brooch belonging to her mother, and her father's hunting dagger, Bergan revealed his long sword, a few daggers, and a wineskin. The inspectors both had wands with tiny amber attached to the tapered end, as well as several books, maps, and charts. It became trouble when they got to Faris.

"Alright son, show us what's in this thing." Faris smiled nervously as he opened his bag. Revealing: several knives, a dozen or so crossbow bolts, a miniature wrist mounted crossbow; adult sized so regular for him, 5 dull looking quartz stones, 15 ft of rope, steel climbing claws, a sling shot with 20 or so bullets, 5 smooth stones perfect for skipping, wood chips, a simple lens acting like a magnifying glass, a simple mirror, 24 different herbs, 16 of which were dangerous in some way or another, 3 tightly sealed bundles of purple soldiers, and a ball, filled with oil, covered in spikes.

"My god son, preparing for war?!" Bergan asked with a mix of admiration, surprise, and horror. A few soldiers moved to get their blades, but Roran raised his hand to stop them, walking over to Faris, who looked up at the man nervously.

"How old are you?" He asked.

"Ten sir" Faris replied, swallowing nervously.

"Hmm…. When I was your age I had at least ten more knives."

Faris laughed at his outlandish statement.

"of course, such items aren't safe, I'm going to have to ask you to surrender them to us."

The inspectors and Bergan gave very unsubtle cues that Faris should comply.

Faris nodded, before adding, "Only if you promise to return them when we leave."

A silence filled the air as everyone stared at those two. Faris kept his eyes locked on Roran's for a good minute before looking away. "Please?" he added.

Roran's laughter filled the hall as he patted Faris on the shoulder heavily. "You have resolve, but you should mix that with a bit of humility."

Faris sighed with relief. From what he remembered from the books, Roran liked straight-forwardness from those around him, and while he didn't warm up to strangers immediately, he tended to be agreeable enough as long as no one posed a threat to his goals, Faris was a kid, a kid equipped with some nasty toys yes, but Roran didn't seem to consider him a threat. Even then, Faris didn't want to fight him, the man had the Devil's own luck when it came to situations like these, and Faris wouldn't want to test his mettle against that, nor did he want to be Roran's enemy, he had spent so much time reading in his perspective that Roran ended up being one of his favorite characters in the book, despite having at first been turned off by his abrupt introduction into his life.

Roran nodded to two of his guards, who gingerly picked up the now refilled pack and put it away with everyone else's weaponry.

"All right, with that out of the way, I ask that you all join me for dinner, I'm curious as to what has befallen you."

As they were led away by servants Faris could observe a beautiful woman with copper hair walking down to Roran, holding a little girl of about 2 years old. Tagging behind her was a little boy, maybe 8, skipping along happily, and finally a teenage girl. Faris assumed the girl was Ismira, the child given birth to right after the war ended. Faris turned back and smiled to himself, happy Roran was able to achieve such a happy family even after his grief over Eragon leaving.


	19. Chapter 19

_I don't want to die, but I want to kill them all for what they did!  
Life was better under Galbatorix!  
My knee! My knee hurts! Godammit that evil woman! My knee hurts!  
Jahat! Jahat! Please! Why didn't she answer!  
I can't die now, I have to find my mother! Galbatorix had promised! He promised! He pro-"_

Elva visibly flinched as she felt the man die. The wave of nausea that affected her by now ceased to debilitate her, but it was still uncomfortable whenever she experienced it.

_I hope my boy is eating well, oh no I didn't cook any dinner on the road for him! And he better sleep well!_

"Are you alright Elva?"

She turned to face the voice, Haya Ser, Faris's mother, looked on quizzically.

"I'm fine, one of their men died, the rest are in bad shape." She said tersely. Before smiling and adding, "I'm sure he's eating like a king in Ilrea now."

Haya stuttered, followed by chuckles from her husband and Angela.

"Oh hush" she muttered, annoyed with their teasing.

Elva felt... complicated about Faris, on one hand his incessant attempt at thinking positively annoyed her, but at the other had it was kind of endearing. When she had seen him, she had felt visible rage, which was why she was here with them all, they all wanted to avenge what happened to Faris, Anya's infiltration of the State Mages may have been an anomaly, but they needed to find out for sure.

_Hmmm…. More work, more work, more work._

Elva turned to Solembum, who stared back silently before replying.

…_Fine, I'll get them. _He morphed into his cat form and slunk off into the night.

Silence followed for a few moments before the men began screaming.

_Fuh?! Cats?! Their tearing and biting me!_

_Argh! A werecat?! Why are they here!? WHY ALL THE CATS?!_

_No, reaching for my throat! And our wards, broken down!_

_No! No! Horaquan take them hel-_

"Now" Elva whispered. As a unit, the group charged in to the surprised cultists. Haya raised her hand as 2 of the attacked mages fell lifeless to the floor.

_Not now..._

_Father..._

Bergan charged in with a mace, braining an unsuspecting cultist before kicking another with enough force to knock them into a wall.

_Severe back pain, dislocated elbow, ribs feel weird, hard to breath._

Angela wielded her double-bladed staff, expertly spinning it as she cut through cultist and mage alike.

_Hands missing, push them two inches away, and they would have survived. They are all destined to fail if no one intervenes._

And Elva darted into the fray, two poisoned daggers in her hand, she went after those most distracted, one strike was enough

_I only joined because my mother sold me out. But I clawed my way to where I am now, I can't die like this! I ca-_

Elva slit his throat to quicken his demise, ignoring his final words.

_For the glory of Jahat! What a waste! Dying here like this!?_

That mage succumbed to a knife in his spine as Elva moved past her, cutting into cultists without pause.

She charged the last two cultists, who raised spears to strike her, she backed up, holding her knives defensively as they approached to flank her.

_She! She looks just like our daughter, if the famine hadn't taken her, the blasted war ended our lives, we can't die now, not until the world shares our pain._

Elva felt the woman's steps falter.

_My wife was destroyed by Delilah's death, I would have done anything to bring her back. Jahat restored her mind, even if it was a façade, she remembers me, I won't lose that smile! Not to anyone!_

Elva watched as the two cultists charged forward. She smiled at them, they stumbled in surprise as she walked closer, looking excited

_Two more cultists fell to Angela's blade, the first one, thought to his cousin, who would now be left with no one, the second one had no time to think as he passed on._

"Mom? Dad? It's me, Delilah!" She began to casually walk up to them, even as the bile threatened to fill her throat.

_It can't be!_

_Delilah?! No! It's a trick!_

She continued her skip forward, tears glistening as she prepared herself. "It's been so long! I wanted to see you! I forgive you! I forgive you for leaving me at the foot of a tree! I was found! They saved me!"

_My Delilah?!_

The woman began to lower her spear, before dropping it on the floor loosely. The man could only look on, tears staining his cheeks and wetting his beard.

_Solembum howled in pain as a cultist cut at his shoulder, the cats in his command charged the cultist, biting and tearing until the man lay as a twitching torn up mess, crying silently to whatever god could hear him._

Elva walked forward, visibly crying as she smiled at them, raising her hands in the gesture of an embrace, knives still in hand. The two cultists ran to her, preparing to hug their long-lost daughter.

_Can we atone for what we did?_

_Do my bloody hands deserve to hold my daughter?_

As they moved forward to hold their "daughter", they fell forward, like puppets cut from a string. The blood from their slit necks pooled at Elva's feet.

Elva puked, and puked, and puked till her stomach was empty, even then she puked some more. Angela ran to her to comfort her.

"Elva! You didn't have to go so far! Why did you?"

"They murdered a family eating dinner, killed the children and forced the parents to watch, under the orders of the Scarlett Heart, all for the promise of their daughter's return." Elva spat; her mouth tasted awful. "Their greatest fear wasn't that they couldn't atone for their sins, that was their surface thought."

Angela watched on in concern as Elva wiped the tears from her eyes. This had been the first time a fight with a group of these remnants of the Priests of Helgrind and Black Hand, who now dubbed themselves the Scarlett Heart, had such a profound effect on Elva's consciousness.

Elva continued bitterly. "Their fear was on how they could sate their blood-lust when it was all over, that even if they had their daughter back, how best could they share with her their newfound lust for death and murder." She smiled. "I only register the surface fears, because the deep and truly twisted ones reverberate my soul. Whoever this Jahat is, we need to stop her, before she spreads too far." She noticed a throbbing on her right cheek bone.

"Do you still not have an identity?" Bergan asked, nursing a bruise he got from a cultist attempting to smash his face in with a club. Haya began healing the bruise. Elva felt immediate emptiness when the bruise was healed, not relief from the pain, but a sort of wiping away, she hated that feeling.

_I miss him, at least I could feel the soothing… no, let's not get distracted._ She shook her head.

"Whoever Jahat is, she is thorough in wiping relevant enough memories of her appearances from her agents out in the fields. But I learned something troubling, we need to head to Du Weldenvarden."

Solembum pricked his ears at that. Angela frowned, "Why?" she said. "The elves would likely allow us, but they are wary of your ability, and it's a little annoying dealing with their wishy-washy way of speaking."

Elva picked herself up and took a swig from her waterskin, washing out the taste of bile from her mouth. "Because we need to warn Nasuada" She wiped the flecks of water from her mouth grimly, "there's a spy."


	20. Chapter 20

Faris walked into the dining hall, the woes of earlier times less prevalent in his thoughts. Only one thing filled his mind now.

"I'm famished" He said to Venka, who was walking beside him as they approached the dining hall. She had been looking a lot better recently, recovering quickly from the attack. And Faris had taught her some of the spells he knew, such as his spell of warding, strengthening spells in general, and light. With her much greater magical prowess she was capable of things at a scale completely outside his reach, but at the same time she could only barely grasp the basics, though given what he had learned from Angela, her speed was very much still exemplary. She had proven that with enough concentration and understanding, and positive reinforcement, she was an able learner. This stride in magic mastery did good for her self-esteem, she was slowly returning to her more boisterous self. This was bittersweet news to Faris, while he was happy that she was recovering…

"Hmph, giving in to hunger already? I guess that's the case, it looks like we're just cut from different cloth!" She said smugly.

"So basically, you're really hungry too, and you can't wait to see what there'll be for dinner."

"What! That wasn't what I said at all! Are you cra-!"

Venka's tirade was interrupted by a very loud and audible stomach rumbling. Venka's face turned red as a rose as Faris and the two guards stifled smiles. The rest of the short walk was silent. As they neared the dining room, Faris felt a hand reaching out to his, turning to see Venka looking pale. Faris moved his hand over to hold hers, and she squeezed it tightly, like she was scared he'd disappear if she let him go. Faris gave it a gentle squeeze of his own, keeping extremely calm to keep his face from reddening.

Even before they could see the dining hall, they could smell a sweet and salty aroma of roasted veal slathered in honey. Faris felt something wet on his hand and turned to see Venka wiping the drool off her mouth with her hand, while still clutching his. Faris slipped his hand out in disgust and wiped it with a handkerchief. Venka stared ahead absentmindedly, Faris followed her gaze and soon all thoughts of her momentary grossness were replaced with the majesty of the feat before them, on a huge table sat a smorgasbord of food. Seated on the table seemed to be maybe four-dozen or so men women and children with a few more people in smaller tables close by. Three large boars, stereotypical apple in the mouth, roasted to perfection, sat on the main table, one boar was set on the smaller tables. Roran sat at the head of the table, Katrina on the right, and Ismira on the left, their younger son sat at the smaller table with other children and a few adults. As the pair entered the hall Bergan waived them forward. As they walked forward the people turned to look at them, quieting down, Faris could feel their eyes on him and he felt slightly self-conscious.

_Are they looking at Venka?! Is it because of how red her hair is? Or is it that we were holding hands?!_

He felt his face heat up, Bergan slipped two seats open for them and they gratefully sat in, welcoming his larger body blocking most of the gazes. They sat to the left of Roran, closer to Ismira, and a family of 5 sat opposite them, the closest to Katrina was a tall well-built man with broad shoulders and greying beard hair. Based on the calluses on his hand Faris assumed that was Horst. The two women and two men besides him were likely his wife and children. They all gave friendly nods to the two, the daughter, Hope, smiled at Faris, who smiled back, barely keeping composure as he felt someone jab his side. He chose to ignore it, instead turning to Roran, who stood up and lifted a simple looking wooden goblet, everyone followed suit, lifting their cups.

"My good friends and family," He began, "It's nice to see you all well, as you can see, after 15 years I still haven't managed to burn this place down, so I'm doing something right." This elicited raucous laughter from the villagers. Roran's face was filled with a smirk as he continued. "Here's to another 100 years of peace!" The hall filled with cheers, both for the occasion and for the food. As everyone began getting a serving Roran turned to Venka and asked. "Young lady, do you recognize me?"

Venka looked confused before nodding her head. "Wait, are you uncle Roran?"

Faris nearly choked on his pork. _Roran's her uncle?!_

Katrina piped in, "You are our niece, your mother was my cousin, from my mother's side, all women in our family inherit this bright red hair. When we heard what happened…"

"I sent a squadron of men down myself." Roran continued. "But by the time they arrived, you were said to have already left for the Capital. I messaged our Queen to let me know when you arrived, so that I could…" He looked awkward for a moment, as if searching for the words.

"We needed to tell you how sorry we were, and that our doors were open to you at any time." Katrina finished, giving a sympathetic smile. Venka after a bit of hesitation smiled back. "Thank you!"

Faris for the most part had turned his attention back to Horst, Baldor and Albriech, who were talking to Faris.

"We were with Roran when the Bergan told the story. Is it true?" They looked at Faris intently.

Faris looked confused and looked back to Bergan, who smiled and winked, saying, "of course it's true, why would I make up what he did."

Baldor scratched his hair, which was almost midnight black. "So, you really defeated a whole squad of Magicians?"

The investigators snapped their heads forward to look at Faris with incredulity and doubt. Faris felt like looking down in embarrassment as even Venka had paused from hogging the food into her mouth to look at him with confusion and awe.

"Well, I didn't get all of them" he said quietly, by now feeling really embarrassed with all the attention.

"Nonsense" Bergan interrupted, "There were 15 of them, and you took down 4 before I even arrived! 5 of them were running with their tails between their legs trying to make off with Venka, the second I arrived you sprinted after them, and by the time I get there next thing I know there's a huge explosion, 5 defeated mages, one saved girl, and one singed boy!"

A lot the towns people, who by now Faris presumed to be the former villagers of Carvahall and some later generations, were looking at Faris like some sort of superhero. Both Ismira and Hope looked at him with wide eyes. Faris felt extremely self-conscious, but not entirely upset over the attention.

"Nonsense!" The first investigator spluttered, "A mere boy?! Defeating full-fledged mages? I know Bergan began teaching you, but how could someone with merely three days of learning defeat a group of mages!" The second investigator nodded in affirmation. Venka, a little irritated, turned to them.

"Weren't you two knocked out immediately?" Venka blurted out.

They turned red as beets as the villagers began to chuckle. Venka turned to Faris, who smiled in thanks before clearing his throat and standing up.

"Alright, so you guys want to hear the story?"

"Is it true there were fifty of them?!" One villager shouted.

"How many did you decapitate!" Another shouted.

_What the hell?! _Faris thought, this was probably the first time they heard the story, and they were already overexaggerating.

"First of all!" Faris shouted, "There were fifteen! And second of all! I only took out eight!"

"All at the ripe age of 8 years!"

"Ten!" Faris yelled in indignation as the villagers chuckled at the back and forth between him and Bergan.

"How old were you Nolfavrell?" One of the older villagers asked, turning to look at a man a bit younger than Roran who scratched his chin before answering with, "Does it even matter? It's not a contest."

Faris continued his story, speaking of how he attacked in surprise, and his plan using the distant flame. The investigators heckled and yelled at him despite all the boos to quiet down. And Faris finally lost his temper.

"Lord Roran, may I have an uncooked egg?"

Roran looked on in confusion, before turning to a servant, who returned with the raw egg. Faris walked up to the investigator.

"Take this and walk to 30 feet away from me, asshat." Faris asked brightly.

"What does that word mean?" The investigator asked.

Faris smiled. "Oh! It's a term I learned, when someone does not have faith in you and you must test your mettle, once you prove yourself, they are an asshat, I am merely announcing that because you my friend, are about to look like an asshat." Faris's smile caused the Investigator's own smirk to falter, before he regained his composure. Faris noticed that the people began to crowd around as Faris pointed a finger at the Investigator, before winking at him and turning around. The investigator's frowning mouth curved into a vicious smirk as he announced.

"See! See! I knew it! He didn't know any-"

The egg exploded in his hand, staining his face, hair, and tunic with baked egg bits, giving him the appearance of a man who was caught showering in scrambled eggs. The explosion was followed by a bit of silence as Faris walked up to the man, took out a handkerchief, and brushed off some eggs from his hand.

"Oof, sir, I see you've made a bit of a mess of yourself; you should probably clean it off asshat."

The hall filled with raucous laughter, the investigator looked like he was about to say something, but thought better of it, he turned to his co-investigator, who merely shook his head. As he turned to sit down and clean himself up the villagers swarmed Faris to talk to him and ask him questions, Bergan was laughing and drinking like a madman, he had challenged a middle-aged woman with auburn hair to a drinking contest, after countless tankards he fell over. Venka found herself speaking to her older cousin Ismira, and Ismira's friend Hope, the two teenage girls were intimidating for the girl, but the fact she was also a magic user caught their fancy and attention. Soon everyone was merry making and having fun. No one would have noticed the fact that the investigators walked up, and left the dining hall. No one then noticed the man who had previously lost to Birgit in a drinking contest get up abruptly and walk out after them.

.  
.

"Damnamnable boy! How did Bergan teach him so much so quickly?! He even covered his mouth to hide the fact he uttered the ancient language!" The investigator clutched his hand, still slightly covered in the egg.

"The real question is how was he skilled enough to defeat those mages from the black hand… that spell was ingenious, casting fire from afar, but the visible exhaustion on his face revealed a lack of magical stamina. Who provided him the energy?" The second asked.

"Perhaps, he had a stone filled with energy."

"Would Bergan compromise his oath to teach him that?!"

The first investigator clenched his teeth in anger, gritting it down he swore as he muttered: "We were utterly defeated, perhaps it's time to make an escape."

The second one wiped some sweat from his brow before asking… "How do you suggest we do that? You know the red stone is in our pack, along with the rest of those packs."

The first one smiled. "I placed a magical signal, imperceptible to anyone who didn't notice. Not even Bergan, for all his skill would know if he wasn't looking for it." He grinned widely, letting his greed get the better of him for the moment. "Bergan's imperial Emerald is there, think of the energy stores! And whatever stone he gave to the boy!"

"Unfortunately, my emerald is completely spent, the boy didn't know his own strength."

The two investigators turn in shock as Bergan closes in behind him, sword going down the first one's arm, severing it.

"Bergan?! Are you turning traitor!?" The first investigator asked, clutching at the stump that used to be his arm.

Bergan simply lifted the severed arm, looking at the palm.

"Edict 64 of the State Mage Association: if any state mages are suspected of going rogue, or have been proven without a shadow of a doubt to being rogue agents…" He turned the severed palm towards them, revealing the investigator's tattoo of a black hand branded on it. The two investigators flinched in fear.

"Then a senior mage is given full authorization to arrest, detain, and if facing someone particularly troublesome, neutralize the accused." He continued, not taking his eyes of the two, who in an increasing panic, screamed all the possible ways they knew to kill someone, growing in alarm as more and more ways ended up merely being stopped by his wards. Bergan eventually sighed, flicking his hand and causing the first investigator to pitch forward as a strong force came at him from behind. His wards blocked the magic, but the kinetic force still affected him as he came crashing down. He struggled to get up as Bergan walked forward, the second investigator firing spell after spell in a panic. Soon the two combined their minds to strike Bergan, as their combined strike moved towards his conciousness a single mental blow shattered their concentration.

"Bergan! How we hate you! You and any other Mage's blessed with power! We are barely where we are right now due to hard training since the association began, it took you only three years to rise to prominence! You are hated by all the weaker mages; we aren't the only traitors!" The investigator smiled, smug that he'd at least rattle Bergan before he died.

Bergan's response shattered his hopes. "Oh… we know." Before plunging his blade into the investigator.

The second one screamed in anger and fear, turning to run, before a knife struck his back in the middle of the spine, forcing him down. "M-my wards?!" He asked in confusion.

Bergan simply smiled and asked, "Did you like your drink?" Before beheading the traitor. He turned to look at the man who tossed the dagger, the man was in his mid-twenties, adorned with dusty brown long hair, and a wiry but muscular build.

"Mandel Byrdson, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Bergan Moorson, I should say the pleasure is mine." Mandel replied smiling, before turning and bowing to Roran, who came into the room with a stern look on his face.

"Mandel, didn't I say knife throwing was a terrible strategy?" He said with grim humor.

"Well yes, but this time the opponent was running away, so 2 out of 10 times I'd only have let him escape for a while longer." Mandel replied with a wry smile, before frowning. "I'll have the guards clean them up."

"No" Bergan stated. "They are coated in a special poison that activates after they die." He set the bodies on fire, tossing the dismembered arm into it. "I must report to Nasuada."

.  
.

"Thank you for your report" Nasuada stated, despite still not being over forty, the stress of her job had finally begun to send the greys. She looked at Bergan with tired eyes. "The two investigators were the strongest of the traitors we found out about, if you hadn't volunteered to go with them, we would have lost two potential mages in training."

"You owe me…" A voice called out singsong from outside the mirror's screen. Bergan cocked his head in confusion. "My queen?"

The mirror turned, revealing Angela, Elva, Solembum, a man, and a woman. Bergan hid his smile as Angela continued speaking, "You should have seen what happened next, when Nasuada took care of most of the traitors, she announced that there had been traitors among them, that a few still remained, and she needed their cooperation, a mage who openly showed dissent was brought forward, the idiot was a traitor, couldn't even wait to reveal himself, he tried getting at Nasuada before being executed, if there are any more traitors, they've got to lie super low now!" She cackled in delight.

Roran scratched his head in confusion. "Angela?! You haven't aged a bit!"

Angela looked at him annoyedly and hmphed before stating. "If you had paid attention back then, I announced that I've been around the grape vine for more than just a decade or two, pay more attention. You already know how elves and dwarves are."

Roran wanted to say Angela didn't look like an elf and certainly wasn't a dwarf, but held his tongue.

"Anyways, Nasuada, you're keeping the deal, right?"

Nasuada looked at Angela hard, before asking in a soft tone. "Are you sure you do not wish to join me? I only want what is best of Alagaesia."

Angela scoffed. "Of course, I know that, but we fundamentally disagree on how you're doing things. There will always be bad mages doing bad things, you can't register every potential mage, and doing so is a waste of resources, and binding them to certain limits is just cruel."

"Crueler than when a single magician burns a village down, to the last man woman or child? Or when a black hand member assassinates the lord of a manor, sending the village to disarray before bewitching the wife of the lord and usurping the position, tell me, is that a kinder outcome?"

"You're too pessimistic." Angela muttered.

Trianna stood up indignantly, "And your too-!"

"Stop" Muttered Elva, who rubbed her head in discomfort. "We completed our end of the deal, you were a woman of your word Nasuada, will you honor your agreement?"

Nasuada sighed, "Yes, I will not disclose to the elder mages the fact that the boy Faris was trained by you. And I will not attempt nor have my mages attempt to steal information away from him, unless of course he himself poses a danger to the school, I will have no choice but to punish him like any other troublemaker."

"Fair enough" Elva continued.

Nasuada turned, looking now at the hooded man and woman. "Ard Amina, Norlock Briarson, to think you had been hiding away at all this time right under our noses, I have to at least commend you for living your life freely post Galbatorix, this does not absolve you of your sins, working to atone by joining my cause would have been though. Ard looked at Nasuada hard, "I never wanted to have to dip my hands in blood. And even now I only reluctantly did so because my old… compatriots tried to hurt my son. Nasuada, take care not to make the same mistakes as them. And besides, my name is Amina anymore, it's Haya."

.  
.

Bergan returned to his room, his headache from the hangover already in effect, he took a huge gulp of water, before running into Faris, who looked like he was trampled by horses.

"You look tired."

"Yeah… the villagers didn't let up." He smiled, before covering it when he noticed Bergan's patronizing grin. "Anyways! Don't do that! That was exhausting.

"But fun right?"

Faris nodded, looking suspicious.

"Then I'm glad you enjoyed it." Upon Bergan Faris's shoulders slumped, he yawned, exhausted. "Thanks, I guess."

As he walked into his room, he turned. "You know, it's funny, I didn't think about it at first, but you have the same name as my father." Before walking into his room and closing the door.

Bergan smiled at his words. "Same name huh… well aint that swell…" Before walking into his own room to sleep.


	21. Chapter 21

Faris felt restless, even though he bid Bergan a good night he was actually full of energy. The excitement of the night had overwhelmed him, and after spotting Bergan leave, he decided to confront him over boasting over Faris' skills. Faris shook his head, he knew this was a world that had just recovered from a major war, but the people seemed so desensitized to such things. He had felt a bit of panic when he saw Bergan attack the investigators, but he realized when he saw the tattoo, that the Black Hand had been more dangerous than the dangerous he had pegged them for. The Black Hand mages were one thing, but the Investigators, with all their skill, could together give Anya trouble. And they called themselves weak in comparison to Bergan. Faris shivered at the thought, though surprised that the shivering wasn't through fear but excitement.

So that was why he was exercising. He hadn't been able to get to his calisthenics workout since the issue with Anya had come up, in fact, if not for that incident, he would have likely had a bit more magical stamina, which was tied in part to his physical stamina. But even then, physical stamina only amounted to so much, he had more physical ability than most human kids his age, but that didn't mean much.

"Fifty-four… fifty-five…" He continued, sweat hitting the floor.

He didn't want to finish until he hit one hundred. As he continued, he began to hear giggling above him, followed by hurried shushes. Instead of freezing, Faris concentrated on the basin to his side, and on the sound above him, and concentrated on two spells.

"Fifty-six, Fifty-seven…"

The basin of water began to morph in color as the images of Venka, Ismira, and Hope appeared before him, they were on their hands and knees, one hand covering their mouths, but their faces revealed grins, Faris could guess that they were watching him. His face heated up a bit more. He continued the push-ups, closing his eyes now as he used the second spell to eavesdrop on their conversation, the image in the basin filled his mind, the scene cleared a bit, revealing the designs of the bedroom, the pillows and blankets looked quite comfortable, with a bed large enough to hold a 5-man family. It seems Ismira, Hope, and Venka were sharing this bedroom. Faris's mind eye turned his attention to the three girls, who were talking now.

"I only see soldiers ever doing that, most boys are content to play in the mud or be absolutely unruly." Ismira began, a light smirk on her face. She turned to Venka, who had an impish grin on her face almost mirroring Ismira's. "I can see you're especially happy around him, is he your betrothed?"

Venka's stuttering was loud enough to be heard both with his spell and without it, almost causing Faris to lose concentration, muddying the image in his mind. Venka was profusely shaking her head, which was nearly as red as her hair. "No! Nononononononono!" She began, lightly smiling before clutching her face. "We're just friends." She frowned, "No… he probably hates me, I bullied him for two years and broke an instrument his father gave him."

"Oh…" Ismira added smiling. "That's good for me then." She smiled at Venka's distraught face. "I'm just kidding, but you shouldn't kid around either, before you know it someone could snatch him."

"I might myself if you're too slow." Hope stated, looking back down her peep hole. She looked back up to see Venka looking at her in disbelief. "What?"

"But he's younger than you!" Venka said in disbelief.

"Isn't he younger than you?" Hope asked, smiling, "I believe you boasted that you were no longer a mere child, and that he still was."

Faris despite himself began to laugh. He caught himself and pulled out a picture as the girls turned to the peep hole, alerted. They looked at him for maybe a minute as he smiled at the picture and fake chuckled at it before putting it under his pillow and returning to his calisthenics. The girls eventually looked away and began speaking again, in a lower voice.

"Hope?" Ismira began, "Didn't Duncan show interest in you?"

Hope scoffed, "He's too busy being a womanizer, I prefer a man who will only pay attention to me. As for you Ismira." She began, poking Ismira in the side, "How goes your father's hunt for a good suitor."

Ismira scowled, "Please, to even be allowed to talk to me, they have to impress my father, and get past my mother. Good riddance to most of them, cowards not even willing to fight a person alone."

"You did break Samon's arm." Hope began.

"And a good thing I did, Morn is a dear friend of my father's and he's always been kind to me! I won't excuse the bullying of the elderly, especially under the paltry excuse of drunkenness!"

The girls' talks devolved into gossip, which Faris paid attention to for a bit, before cutting the connection when he ran out of energy.

"Now I'm hungry…" He said to himself, walking out towards the kitchen, seeing if he could scrounge up some food. A few minutes in the kitchen gave him no luck, so Faris walked outside. "Hunting it is then." As Faris made his way out of the city he contemplated what he would find. While Faris tended to dislike this method of hunting, as opposed to Eragon who became a vegetarian for a while, Faris had eaten so much meat, and had seen so much… action go down that the method of hunting wasn't super uncomfortable, and he had gotten used to doing it now. As he went out into the forest he began to feel for any animals, he was looking for a solitary animal, preferably old or injured in some way, after a few minutes of searching he found an old bunny living alone in an abandoned fox den. After connecting his mind, he killed it rather instantly, absorbing the fleeting specks of its life to fuel his retrieval of the creature. He used a stone he sharpened with magic to cut it open, removing the entrails, intestines, and other inedible organs before skinning it and placing it on a spit.

It wasn't until he finished cooking it and began eating did he contemplate that any magician with an equivalent knowledge of the ancient language but greater strength could likely annihilate a continent if there was no one as skilled to oppose them, he shivered at the thought, After eating his fill he picked up one of the rabbit hairs, whispering a few words in the ancient language he watched as a bit of his energy drained as the hair was cut down the middle, splitting it into two thinner pieces. He nodded to himself and stepped up and out of the area. He left the scraps unburied, a wild animal could partake of the meal, and he had felt several watching him, waiting for him to finish in order to pick up the scraps. It had been a while since he had used his abilities covertly, perhaps the impenetrable city of Roran's would be a decent testing ground.

"No use being as naive as I was before. I have to protect her at least until we reach the capital." He began to sprint back towards the village. Feeling the minds of the guards he slipped past their watch, scaling the wall unnoticed. Stopping himself 5 ft from the top and jumping to the right another 5ft before scaling over the entire thing. He began to sprint, leaping off before landing on the roof of a home in a combination of magic and acrobatic skill to keep it from caving in or disturbing the denizens. As he sprinted across the roofs he landed in the courtyard, moving quickly to avoid the gaze of those who would be out at this time of night. The drunkards and the town singers. As he slipped past them, he realized the castle would likely be impenetrable to him. The walls were simply too smooth to scale up, the guards were too thorough in their sweeps, and he certainly wasn't going to return guns blazing. His little practice done he approached the guard most likely to recognize him and was escorted back into the castle, being scolded not to slip out again.

"So, this city's weakness is anyone able to detect the various traps on the first major wall, and anyone able to slip past or compromise enough guards." Faris smiled to himself, "Other than Elves, no one really extends their mind to others on a regular basis, so this city gets a pass."

"Don't be so smug." A voice called from the corner of his room. It was Bergan who walked up to him. "I noticed your little excursion. And your return trip back. You actually would have been caught if you hadn't crossed the wall during shifting of patrols, that created a tiny window someone with your particular skills could take advantage of, and I'm pretty sure no guard would give you a second glance."

Faris nodded. "Yeah you got me, can you leave my room, I actually want to sleep now."

Bergan nodded, smiling. "Rest up best you can, you've got a long day tomorrow." He said ominously.

Faris scoffed at him as he left the room. Bergan was an odd man to read, capable of severe brutality, but also so… jovial all the time. It was both impressive and unnerving, Faris put those thoughts behind him as he turned in for the night.

"Oh and, peeping is a bad habit." Bergan added with a laugh, leaving the room.

_They did it first._ Faris thought before locking his door and placing a magical alarm, luckily since the door knob was metallic, he could place energy in it, it wouldn't last more than a few hours but that was likely the time he had till sunrise.


	22. Chapter 22

"And why do we have to do this again?" Faris sighed as he nursed the bruise on his forehead. Bergan and Ismira stood over him, sardonic grins over their faces as he slowly got up. Venka wasn't doing much better, fighting back tears as she slowly healed the bad bruise on her arm from Ismira's blade. Of course, she couldn't do it for free, Bergan was attacking mentally at full force and it was all Faris could do to hold the experienced mage back mentally while defending from attacks from Ismira and him. Faris was lucky that his bruises weren't as numerous as they could be, and that none hit him hard enough to slow him down too badly. For his part Bergan had a welt on his left hand when he blocked a dulled dagger, and Ismira's clothing was dirty from the few times she had been tripped up. Bergan chuckled at Faris's face, which betrayed his irritation.

"You never know when an enemy mage and assassin could attack. And you can't use the excuse of lack of sleep to rescue you, for the rest of our trip you could be attacked at any time by me, you need to be ready at the drop of the hat, it will protect you both from surprise attacks, and from harassment from the students." Bergan began. "I'm the only mage here who can compete with you on a mental battle, so you should consider yourself blessed to be both so skilled and with such a willing teacher."

"Gee lucky me." Faris said sarcastically.

"But why is Ismira here?" Venka said, her arm healed. She gave Ismira a sour look.

"Because…" Ismira began before slicing her blade down at Venka's forehead, barely stopping before hitting her temple. Venka's reaction was terrible, flinching and flailing awkwardly before falling flat on her butt. Bergan laughed and Faris used the opportunity to try and go for a quick thrust, which was deflected easily.

"Good effort, but you'll have to try better than that, Ismira is here because she's a good deal better of a swordsman, err, swordswoman than you two combined, but she's not at the level where either of you can't surprise her with ingenuity."

"Good luck though, I'm with you for the long haul." Ismira laughed, hanging her sword by the shoulder. "Father gave me the permission, after a word from mother."

Bergan eyed the soldiers, who watched them with some interest. "Yes, well the added manpower helps out quite a bit as well." He said, turning back to Faris. "Anyways, prepare yourself, it's going to be a painful two weeks."

And so, they began their training sessions, Faris would get the bulk of combat training, learning to parry and dodge and counter attack Bergan, Ismira, and sometimes both, while Venka learned more practical magical lessons till the point of nausea. After that they'd be forced to undertake grueling physical drills while concentrating to do several spells at once. Faris was a good deal better than Venka in this part, but he was forced then to do more, exhausting himself far more quickly. For Venka, while doing a lighter workout, she had to concentrate and lift a boulder, something she could do all day if not for the exercise breaking her concentration, which made her use more energy than she needed, she sometimes collapsed in physical exhaustion, her magic reserves though remained. Faris on the other hand had way more physical endurance, and his concentration was superb, he couldn't lift more than a large rock for an hour or so with magic, but it was no trouble while training, of course he was then expected to hold 4 or 5 at the same time, and make them make unique formations and move in elaborate ways, he sometimes lost conciousness when he ran out of magic.

That wasn't the worst part though, after getting up from this grueling exercise, they had to face the combined effort of Ismira and Bergan, who had spent the time the two kids trained to rest, relax, and make casual remarks. The worst part being the longer Faris and Venka could last, the more rested Ismira and Bergan were for the final training session. After the torture they would be given a high energy meal and delicious rest, but they would always wake up sore. Faris wanted so badly to get back at them, as did Venka. But no matter how desperately they fought, they didn't have the energy to do more than last a few minutes defending and reducing as many bruises as possible.

"I can't handle this anymore!" Venka scowled as she ate her stew and chewed angrily on her bread.

"I feel you, but I'm too exhausted to get back at them, I don't have the magical stamina to keep up." Faris replied, he had already cleaned out his bowl and was taking sips of water from a waterskin.

Venka finished her meal and stuck her hand out, Faris dutifully handed her the water skin and she drained its contents, before tossing it back to him. She let out a content burp, Faris grimaced slightly.

"What?!" She asked, smiling angrily, "Are you upset I'm not a prim and proper lady?!"

"What are you talking about?" Faris asked.

"Yeah! Are you upset you're stuck with me and not someone as skilled or beautiful or lady-like as Ismira?!" She pulled her knees up and face down. "I can't compete with her, it would have been better if she had this magical power, she wouldn't have botched up as badly as me, her parents would still be."

Faris put his hand to her mouth. "Don't say that! Look, you've got a lot of problems sure, but I don't think anyone else is better suited to your power as you!"

Venka looked at him. "Oh… a lot of problems huh!"

Faris felt panic as her voice rose. "Look! You know what I meant."

Just as Venka was about to chew him out one of the soldiers standing guard piped up.

"Ya know, it'd be convenient if you could split your skills or something'"

Faris turned to him quizzically. "What do you mean?" Venka turned to look at the soldier as well.

The soldier, on the spot now looked to the side embarrassedly, "I mean, it's just a joke, but what if you were able to split your strength. And she was able to split the magic power, thingamabob."

Faris and Venka's eyes widened in unison. "That's actually fantastic." They said simultaneously. The soldier looked in surprise.

"What?! Really!? It was just a joke though." The soldier said, confused.

"No, no… you see, the Elves do it all the time, and most human magicians do it, hell, the Du Vrangr Gata did it in the war." Faris looked at Venka, who looked back at him, excited at an opportunity for vengeance. "Alright look, this is going to require us to connect our minds, um… it's going to be a little difficult, we have to keep the connection, no matter how embarrassing."

"Sure, let's do it." Venka stated excitedly.

"No, Venka you don't understand, it's gonna share everything we will be thinking, good or bad." Faris began again, "Some things might make you mad."

"I'm fine though!" She said. "Come on we have to get used to doing it."

Faris felt a familiar mind reach out to his and began lowering his walls. He shivered as their minds touched, it had happened before, but only shortly, and normally so matter-of-factly for a quick purpose, so they never had to worry about leaving lasting thoughts before. He saw Venka shiver too, and began feeling excitement and nervousness, matching his own. They looked at each other in the eyes, both determined to hold the connection.

"I am the will."

"And I am the power."

"…."

They giggled for a bit over the lameness of their statement.

"And we're going to kick some ass."

.

.

.

The morning training was going at normal pace, it was the last day, so it seemed like Ismira and Bergan were paying a bit extra attention. When it came to the point of combining physical exercise with magical concentration, Faris and Venka pooled their combined will and magical energy, with it they went an hour longer than the last session, with will and energy to spare, but didn't show it. Ismira and Bergan came to see what looked to be an exhausted and irritable pair of youths, who must have put their all in for hope that the last bit of training wouldn't be as torturous as it had been.

"Good effort children." Bergan stressed the word to try and get on their nerves. "But we're still going to come at you with full force. He dulled Ismira's blade as well as his own. Faris doing the same for his and Venka's weapons. As he watched Faris do it he noticed a bruise on his left cheek.

"Oh? Had a lover's quarrel?" He said, trying to rile Faris up.

"Something like that." Faris replied absentmindedly, taking up an attacking stance. His limbs were no longer shaking from exhaustion.

Ismira for her part noticed that Venka's stance was a lot better than before, drastically so, as if she had put in 3 months of training into the night of rest. "So, I see that the trainings finally imprinting on you?" She asked slightly mockingly.

"You can say that." Venka laughed. Ismira narrowed her eyes, Venka's confidence in her stance was also dramatically different, it was almost as if she was a different fighter.

Bergan began with a lightning fast overhead swing, preparing to shift its momentum when Faris parried and dodged it, he was surprised when Faris instead blocked it, and held. Ismira on the other hand widened her eyes as Venka seemed more adept in parrying and retaliating to her attacks.

"So, you had a bit of juice left? Smart! But that won't stop me from-!" Bergan began before he began to lose balance as an entire section of the earth beneath him began to shift and slide like an earth quake, in this imbalance he barely blocked an attack from Faris, who had come in with a magic augmented leaping attack.

"Hiding your magic?!" Bergan yelled.

"No!" Faris replied, before pushing Bergan back with a wave of force. "Just borrowing from a friend!"

Venka for her part continually kept up with Ismira, Faris's connection with her allowed her to convert her magic energy into physical ability subtly, while she couldn't control it as best as Faris could, she felt pride as her blade always moved quickly enough to block Ismira's blows, even getting a few glancing shots at the older girl.

Bergan shook his head in amazement, he had been training these two at their limits to toughen them up for whatever they would face, and they ended up blowing his expectations. Of course, neither of them could hope to be this skilled alone, but he shivered at the thought of a Venka given Faris's temperament and training, or a Faris with Venka's power. Even as he struck at Faris, he fought mentally, trying to severe their mental bond, seeing though that their minds were intertwined like a binding rope knotted in at itself, you could see neither the beginning, nor the end. As he observed closer, he realized though that Faris's end was a bit larger actually, there was a good bit of his mind and memories still closed off it seemed. He attacked that section to try and break the hard connection between Venka and Faris, only to have Venka almost break his arm with a stab, and Faris push him back with a kick to the chest, knocking the wind out of him. He now defended against the two of them, who's fury and humiliation over the training sessions mounted into this full-on onslaught, with the goal of giving Bergan the taste of retribution.

"You know!" He said, shouldering a strike to the shoulder prematurely as he blocked a simultaneous strike aimed for his cheek. "You're doing really good, in fact, if you were focused on killing or defeating only me you would have won." Another strike caught his off hand, and he was forced to back pedal, barely blocking their strikes with a single hand. "But you forgot something it seems."

Faris turned too late to see Ismira kick him, forcing him to fall over, just as Bergan caught Venka, enduring two blows to the face as he tossed her high in the air and kicked Faris after her with a magic powered kick before collapsing. Ismira ran up to him.

"I can hold them for 1 minute."

"Good." Bergan began. "I need to exhaust the two of them, this is an important lesson."

Before Venka hit the ground Faris rolled and caught her, as they tumbled down the hill their mental bonds began to lessen as the physical pain became a source of distraction. Ismira ran down after them and struck with a devastating downward cleave that was blocked by the combined effort of Faris and Venka.

"You guys sure look cute together, when's the wedding?" Ismira asked lightly.

Shit, Faris thought as the connection between him and Venka severed. When they had first connected, it had almost erupted into a fist fight, the embarrassment of their surface thoughts, especially in relation to each other was almost too embarrassing to bear, so they had done their best to ignore any of those thoughts. It had certainly not helped that they slept in the same carriage, and it just made their morning awkward, especially when it came to Faris having to explain normal biological processes, which then got into an even more awkward conversation, which they chose to seal away. Venka had then made the mistake of mentioning how they were closer than a couple at the moment, which after the thought reverberated through their shared connection led to the altercation in which Faris had the bruise on his cheek.

As their conciousness split Faris immediately began to feel the lethargy begin to come upon him, without Venka's wealth of magic to rely on, his exhaustion was setting in again, Venka for her part still had the magic to spare and was able to push back Ismira for a bit, before the older girl outmaneuvered Venka, who no longer had the extra eyes or fresh access to martial expertise Faris had to offer in their connection. Faris felt himself lock up in a vice like grip as Bergan slid down the hill, sword in hand. And Venka was tripped up and scraped her knee, any attempt to heal or regroup was broken by Ismira repeatedly smacking her lightly with the flat of her sword, keeping her from concentrating.

Bergan reached the bottom of the hill, breathing in exhaustion, his left hand looked broken due to its swelling and colorization, he looked at Faris, who had been constantly switching from left to right hand the entire fight to throw him off guard, then to Venka, who had been holding her own against Ismira, who was an extremely competent duelist.

"You… pass… For now." He breathlessly blurted out, before taking out his emerald and healing his and Ismira's wounds and fatigue.

"You guys clean yourselves up and head to bed, we've got to get into Ilrea early to avoid an uproar." He finished.

Ismira looked at the two, who lay exhausted, sympathetically. "For what it's worth you almost got us." She left the pair, shaking her head in humor.

After a half an hour Faris leaned up into a sitting position, and turned to Venka, who was facing away from him.

"Venka…"

"…"

"Venka…"

"…"

"Venka!"

He turned her over to see she was extremely red. Faris sighed and extended his hand, after a few moments she gingerly took it, the attempt to connect their minds was not as deep as the last time, so Faris had to concentrate as he borrowed her energy to heal the wounds she did not know how to yet, leaving the rest for her, which she did easily.

"Hey…" He began, "are you okay?" He smiled wryly. "Or is the thought of us getting married that repugnant."

Venka laughed, she and Faris both knew how they had reacted to Ismira's teasing. She was both relieved and lonely without the connection to his mind, though she had felt there was a large part of him that he had hidden from her, he for the most part revealed his mind except for whatever that large swath was, and didn't extend into her mind that deeply. She was thankful for that, he had been so kind to her, and she didn't want him to realize it. Despite what she said, she resented him deeply for what happened to her parents, but she also cared for him, and had begun to care for him when he had grabbed her hand and led her out of the nightmare that was her house. She both despised and liked him, and couldn't really fully reconcile those feelings yet, nor decide which one she truly believed in.

Faris for his part had already promised himself in the ancient language that he would protect her. That language was the binding word of truth, Venka's feelings about him did little to change his feelings on the matter. He grabbed the dagger laying by his side, Bergan had thrown it back to him when he had declared himself winner. Sheathing it to the side he gingerly got up. And held a hand for Venka.

"Hey…" He began gently. "Tomorrow's a new day."

Venka after a few moments smiled, taking his hand. "You say 'hey' too much."


	23. Chapter 23

"So, you're the children I've been hearing about."

Both Bergan and Venka were standing as straight as possible, as politely as they thought possible. Bergan and Venka kneeled before the figure in front of them, as she hadn't given them permission to rise yet. The woman looked at the two, her eyes resting on Venka, then Faris, then back to Venka.

"The girl with magic like a dragon's, and the boy trained by Angela. And the two of you defeated one of the most skilled remnants of Galbatorix's original Black hand mage-assassin group." Nasuada shook her head in mirth. "This is an interesting year." She regarded them for some more time before speaking to Bergan to get up. As he and Ismira rose Nasuada asked, "So, where would you recommend them?"

Bergan thought for a moment, before answering, "I would put them at Pearl."

Trianna, who Faris recognized from Anya's memories, stood up along with several other people wearing similar robes. "Pearl!? That's the highest rank for students. I'd understand wanting to put them at the Silver or even Gold level, but Pearl?!" The other mages began to shout, with Nasuada opening her hand. As they quieted down, she began to speak.

"This isn't the first time a mage has started in pearl, in fact, this year 6 apprentices are starting in that level due to, and if I'm correct in remembering, _overwhelming talent_." Several of the mages looked down embarrassedly from her scrutiny.

"My queen," Trianna began politely, "they are entering unannounced, this year's session is about to begin and the testing is over, even if they were truly as skilled as Bergan says, they cannot be given special treatment. The six apprentices did take their tests, and did better than a majority of the first years, and even better than many second and third years.

"Then maybe these two should be tested." Bergan retorted.

Trianna looked at him hard, "True, fine, but the proctor returned to his post by Surda, it would take him weeks to return."

"Then perhaps you all could witness the test." Nasuada said curtly, turning to Faris and Venka. "If these two are half as skilled as I've been told, then they do deserve to be tested, they were intercepted by the Black Hand not once, but thrice, it had been our duty to wipe out the remnants of Galbatorix, but we've failed in that regard, have we not?" The mages could only stare back in silence. "I thought as much. They will take the test tomorrow." Trianna nodded with acceptance, a few other mages followed suit but a few couldn't hide the distaste on their faces at the idea of having to judge the student exams.

As one mage passed by Faris could hear him mutter, "how much magic could a pair of kids even produce anyway…"

After all the mages Bergan left, Nasuada sighed in discontent. "They're getting on my nerves, I approved this group in order to regulate magic users and protect the people, they're too busy vying for ridiculous powerplays." She clutched a necklace of gold with three beautiful rubies adorned in the middle in a triangle formation.

Faris felt surprised, while Nasuada had in the book shown a dislike for political talk, she only let herself go when in the presence of her maid, or any other close friends. This meant she wasn't wary of Faris or Venka, and that Bergan was one of the few people in her friend circle.

"They are in fact truly tiring to deal with. You look like you've been through another war." Bergan laughed.

"You don't look too good yourself, you were only seven when the war ended, it's only been 15 years but your hairs all gray and you haven't bothered to remove the stubble."

Faris did a double-take. Which caused Nasuada to smile as Bergan looked upset.

"What! So, I'm only twenty-two! You'd get these gray hairs if you had to deal with everything I go through! And shaving is a tiresome endeavor!"

Now that Faris looked, Bergan did look younger than he had pegged him, but his style and hair had made him look more like a middle-aged man. Which Faris now realized would have meant he should have heard of him during the War with Galbatorix, especially a human mage so powerful. But still…

"So, you're not a geezer?" Venka asked.

Nasuada laughed as Bergan began his lengthy tirade over respect to elders, no matter how young those elders were, and how the children of the day had no sense of propriety. This tirade continued for a while until Bergan regained his composure, turned to a smiling Nasuada, embarrassedly scratched his head, and turned to leave.

Nasuada watched him go before turning her attention back to Faris and Venka, the trace of a smile still on her lips. "My maid shall lead you two to the room you will be staying in, Bergan told me explicitly due to the trauma of your experiences, that you two shouldn't be separated, especially at night. He also mentioned something about half a forest being drenched in water during what should have been a dry spell."

Venka turned red as she remembered the first night in which she had slept in the campground alone. She had woken up in the middle of the night from her recurring nightmares, not seeing Faris or anyone she knew she panicked and began utilizing her magic, doing the thing she remembered the most as she gathered the water from a nearby lake and drenched the entire campground with the lake. Since then Faris has had to hold her hand every time they slept, she was embarrassed, but he was gracious about it, and never seemed to make too much comment on her habit to drool in her sleep. Faris was a good deal more concerned about his hygiene than she was, so much so she sometimes wondered who was the boy and who was the girl. Though his habits had begun to rub off on her, and she began to take a bit better care of herself. She had always been forced to do it by her parents, and Faris' adamant demands that she took a bath before bedtime had begun to finally get to her, especially after he taught her the way to remove dirt and grime through a spell, and heat up a bit of the river. Lost in thought she didn't notice that Nasuada had finished speaking and that they were outside now, a maid leading them out of them to a room.

As Venka got into the room she saw the bed, tears streamed her face as she ran and tackled the bed, feeling the softness of the down and silken fabric of the pillows and sheets. She squirmed and writhed over the bed like a cat who found a warm patch of carpet, just happy to lie there for all of eternity. Faris for his part sat down on a chair with a bit of padding, opening his pack to remove one of his quartz stones, he had been dumping excess energy in to it, whenever he could spare, the travel was grueling and he hadn't had much spare energy, but it had been somewhat enough to equal that of one of the Black Hand Mages he fought, it was still less than either of the investigators, but it would have to do. He poured nearly all his remaining energy in it, shuddering a bit as the wave of fatigue hit him, Venka noticed, walking over she placed her hand on the stone, and pumped in a tiny bit of her energy. Faris gave nearly a double take as the quartz began to glow, before fading, watching in surprise as what was about equal to a year's supply of his stored magic was just refilled.

"Thanks" He said. Feeling a bit self-conscious over how weak his magical ability was still. Despite the improvements from the training, he was still a bit weaker by himself than a single one of those Mages who had attempted to kidnap Venka. Venka it seemed though gained the most out of the training, her physical stamina had improved quite a bit, and a bit of the chubbiness she had had went away, she looked like one of those child gymnasts now. And her sword skills dramatically improved. Though she was still worse than even him, but he had improved as well over the two weeks, dramatically more than she did in that regard.

"Don't mention it." She replied. Their short mental bond hadn't just helped them overcome Bergan, it seemed Venka had learned some of Faris's "strange" manners of speaking and phrases. Which meant that he'd have at least one person laughing at his jokes, but he couldn't be passive aggressive any more with her nearby. "It's the least I can do after everything you've been teaching me." She admitted. "I know you have less magic than the average mage, but you've made it up by being pretty dang skilled. I don't think I could remember that many words in the ancient language, while knowing all those other languages, even now only a few ones remain in my head, the others sort of just slipped out."

"You aren't going to make fun of me for being so weak?" Faris asked, raising an eyebrow.

"What would be the point?" Venka replied, sighing as she lay back unto the bed. "Maybe I would have done that 6 weeks ago. But that's unfair and stupid. Besides, the me back then would have definitely lost any fight to the you back then."

"True, but things may be different now." Faris continued.

"No… they wouldn't, you'd win the mental battle hands down, and you'd stop me from casting any spells, I'm not skilled enough to stop that."

"Are… are you okay?" Faris asked, a bit concerned with Venka's somber demeanor.

"I just feel bad for those other apprentices, someone as weak as you is going to go kick their butts and show them up, it's just unfair."

"There it is." Faris muttered, "Venka with the smart mouth. I was beginning to miss it."

"You know you couldn't do anything without it." Venka laughed.

Faris shared her mirth, their conversation deepened into silly and inconsequential things, and even then, that felt precious to Faris. Eventually, the conversation drifted to the training with Bergan and Ismira. And Venka laughed as she remembered Bergan's face after they pulled their stunt.

"But I want to give him a good whack by myself, with no help."

Faris nodded in agreement. "I do want to get back at them one day."

"Faris?" Venka began.

"Yeah?"

"You know more than just fighting with the knife and sword, right?"

"Well yeah, I observed it while training under Angela, and I practiced what I remembered."

"Not just that, there are a few things you know that Angela didn't teach you."

"…"

"I don't want to know where you learned them, I just wanted to know if you could… maybe teach me?"

"Really?" Faris looked at Venka in surprise. She had despised having to do the physical training. It was because of how difficult it was for her to get used to it. He was surprised she would bring up learning another physically tasking skill.

"I noticed the way you punch and kick is different, it's weird kind of, but the way you stand and move and, even the way you breathe when fighting is… explosive, and fast, and, graceful? I guess that's the word? But because of that, even though Bergan and Ismira were better swords people, you were able to do some surprising things. And they didn't know how to react to some movements you made.

"Oh!" Faris had been practicing martial arts for nearly 12 years as Damien, and when he turned 4, he had begun doing the practical drills he had learned back on earth. His parents had allowed him to take the class, and he devoted himself to it after an encounter with some older kids when he turned 8, that mixed with his gymnastics training and early love for parkour molded his physical skills, and while he had a different body, his mind remembered the movements, and he was quickly catching up to his old skill level. Though he needed a training partner definitely. "All right, I have to tell you though, it's not going to be fun at first."

Venka smiled, "I'll be a good student."

"Alright then, then I'll teach you, but only one at a time, it's confusing otherwise, so… what matters the most to you? Attacking the opponent, or stopping them from attacking…."

They spent longer than they would have thought training. Venka it seemed was actually very well attuned to the more flowing style of Kung Fu than anything else Faris had tried introducing her to. Faris was humorously thrilled to find that Northern Shaolin style and Tai Chi were both skills Venka acclimated to quickly, she was certainly better than he had been when he had first tried either. Solembum had taught him memorization techniques when they first met, and through that he had perfect recall of his life before he died. This gave the added benefit of being able to remember feelings and impressions during any moment of his life, even miniscule things like the smell, or background noise. This was extremely important when he began to relearn his martial arts, and he ended up getting the basics back in a few short years.

He shook his head as Venka 's movements showed a level of competency that his kung fu instructor would have given pause to, especially for a new comer.

"I can't believe you've gotten this far already, I guess the physical training paid off more than I thought."

"Maybe I'm just a secret super genius talent!" Venka smiled, excited, practicing the punching and flowing kicks. Her body was very flexible, so the techniques were easily replicated by her, sometimes to an even better extent than Faris's demonstrations. "But some of them feel really weird," she muttered, "especially punching, I extend my arm then twist it before it fully extends, and the way I sweep my hand when I open my palm, and the swiping motion. I like the other punch better; it feels more natural."

"Those techniques come with practice, repetition, and developing of muscle strength and endurance in the right places. Don't forget to breath, that's important." Faris commented, making slight adjustments to her poses whenever needed. He was gaining a lot of insight just training her, seeing where he had issues as well due to their relatively similar sizes. "Don't forget that core exercises are extremely important for any discipline."

Venka made a face. "Those gave me terrible cramps the first two times."

"But you feel a lot better now." Faris commented, smiling.

"True… alright." Venka stuck her tongue out. "I always wondered why you didn't play with the rest of us as much, so you were cheating and learning all this stuff huh?"

Faris shrugged, "I wasn't strong enough to keep up when we were kids, my body was a bit weaker than the rest of the kids. It wasn't until recently that all these drills and internal training began to show."

Venka snorted. "You're dedicated, but all the well, I guess. Hey, why is it so bright now?"

Faris looked outside, eyes widening to the sunrise. "oops…"


	24. Chapter 24

"I'm here to take you to, oh?" The maid, a young woman with straight brown hair, opened the door to see the pair of groggy youths contorted in odd poses as they were punching and kicking. "Hello?" The two flinched, turning to look at her with a mix of surprise and embarrassment.

"We… we didn't sleep last night." The girl said sheepishly. "We were busy, training."

The maid looked at them skeptically, "all right then, get yourselves cleaned quickly." No sooner had she said that as the two held hands, and what looked to be a layer of dust and grime plucked itself off them, making its way to the bath before being washed down the drain. "Hmmm…. Good enough, but you should still wash up, get rid of the sleep in your eyes at it."

After half an hour of quick cleanup Faris and Venka lined up in front of the maid, who observed them with a critical eye before nodding in approval and walking them down.

"I heard my brother escorted you to Ilrea, I hope he wasn't too much trouble." She said lightly.

"Bergan is your brother ma'am?" Faris asked.

"Yes, in fact, Ilrea is the city we were born in, our parents are one of the old nobles, and one of the first to swear fealty to Nasuada after the war."

"Oh? Really?" Faris asked. "But why? I'm sure your family was powerful under Galbatorix's rule, why would they submit to their rule, and let you become a maid?"

"I'm more of a secretary, my maid duties only go so far as to help my queen organize her paperwork, and help direct guests all over. And I and my brother owe the Varden our lives, this is the least we can do to pay them back."

Venka looked curious, "What happened?"

"When the Varden attacked the city, which was then called Urûbaen, Galbatorix called for any group of children in close proximity, we were the first ones his men noticed, and he took them, despite my family's support of him over that terrible century." She held her self. "When he was defeated by the combined effort of the Shade Slayer, Elf Princess, and Murtagh, they shielded us from the final attack, which ripped most of the top layer of this castle from its foundations, and would have destroyed this city. They didn't demand anything of us two, they merely asked us where our homes were, before anything else, even before gloating or celebrating their victory, they returned us to our parents."

She smiled. "Many still argue that the Varden should not have gone to war, that this turmoil we face now is their fault. I say that a king that is willing to destroy his most loyal subjects in order to achieve a petty victory is the absolute worst person to rule." As the procession continued towards a large pavilion Faris noticed the general attire of people began to change, less men and women in tunics and blouses, and more people in the dark robe with gold trimmings along the sleeves that he had seen the mages in Nasuada's office wear.

"The mages seem not to respect Nasuada. Which is weird cause I think Galbatorix was a worse king." Venka looked to the maid for confirmation.

They arrived at a large pavilion, flags of different lords and ladies littered the area, the largest being the symbol of the Varden, which replaced the Broddring kingdom's original flag. 13 men and women sat in a semicircle looking down on an arena like area, littered with scorch marks and a few deep furrows, as well as several practice dummies, large rocks, ponds of water, and a whole host of other things.

"Well, yes and no, it is true that most faced a life of servitude or death under Galbatorix, but many of Nasuada's policies regarding the scope of what mages can do can be seen by some as extremely heavy handed. Many mages argue that the ability to use magic is a talent and skill just as much as being a blacksmith, or an exemplary musician, or an accomplished swordsman, and that mages should not be given extra burdens to take on. Of course, many of the weaker mages have received higher status after joining Nasuada, she and many others have been very ingenious in the way mages could devote their abilities to help with public works, and that's where the different guilds come into play."

Faris noticed that six of the thirteen wore the robes he noticed Trianna and her entourage attired in, and others were wearing an assortment of different clothing of different distinct colors. The pavilion had raised step seating in the style of an amphitheater, and it was full of children and adults, a vast majority of whom wore either the black robe with gold trimmings or a light blue robe with white trimmings.

"What are these different guilds?" Venka asked curiously.

"It will take a bit too long to explain them all, since we are here, and it seems the proctors look impatient." The maid gave the two kids a reassuring smile. "Good luck out there!"

"What's your name?" Faris asked as they stepped towards the arena.

"Hanna!" She called back, before bowing before the thirteen and turning to leave. Giving a waive to her brother, who awkwardly waived back, to the amusement of some of the other judges. Faris and Venka walked forward, and stood before the thirteen. Faris bowed first followed by Venka, who gave a light curtsy.

In the middle of the thirteen mages, a well-built man with long black hair and piercing blue eyes looked at them, seemingly bored, he wore what seemed to be a tunic modelled after the black and gold robe, he had a billowing cape, clasped together with two pins that were studded with pretty big diamonds, he had a necklace, a simple metal chain, but the ornament that hung from it was another diamond. Faris new with almost absolute certainty those gemstones weren't for just showing off. Many other of the mages had jewelry of different size, shape, and cut, though none seemed as well adorned as the man in the center was, he cleared his throat, and in a booming voice spoke.

"I thank my fellow pursuers of the arcane arts for coming here on short notice, I know many of you were delving into further secrets of magic, or busying yourselves with the numerous public-works our queen has put into motion, so I will do my best to make sure we do not have to use up too much of your precious time." He turned to the two children. "Faris and Venka, as your names are put, two children from one of the post-war villages, Briarwood. I have heard tales of your exploits, and of how in total 18 cultists of the villainous Black Hand were subdued through your actions and tenacity." He leaned his head on his fist as he slouched forward on the table, giving a bemused smile.

Faris and Venka remained in their positions, bowing and curtsying respectively.

"You may rise." The mage said. "I have been told that Bergan recommended you the pearl initiate title."

Murmurs of surprise could be heard from the crowd.

"Two more? But the examinations ended!" someone said.

"It's unprecedented!" shouted another.

"They're too young! The six who made it were at least 13, in fact they're too young to even be bronze initiates!" Another screamed.

The mountain chorus of disapproving voices caused Venka to begin to panic, her mouth began to tremble, and Faris grabbed her hand in solidarity, calming her a bit. The head mage let the crowds speak a bit longer, before silencing them with a raised hand and magic enhanced voice.

"Due to the unprecedented nature of this, many voiced their concern over children as young as ten and twelve being admitted into the main halls of our illustrious academy, especially as one normally needed to spend the year prior as a copper initiate before they were deemed worthy of becoming even a bronze initiate, most children below the proper age taking positions as pages and assistants to the students in higher positions and full-fledged mages, if even." Many of the people in the crowd nodded along. It was only fair, many of them reasoned.

"But… six have passed the diamond initiate test, and they were admitted into the diamond initiate class despite being first years, true they had been in the copper initiate faze before, but they had shown themselves exemplary, and came from an impressive pedigree, these children here were rumored to have defeated a member of the original Black Hand, a member skilled enough to evade pursuers for the past 15 years."

Many people in the crowd grew silent, the Black Hand was an organization to be wary of, even if a mage could be caught by surprise it would require an extreme level of power or ingenuity to overpower a mage as skilled as the fabled original 24, who by now would have been reduced to 6, yet two children had overcome one of those originals?

"These rumors are enough for us to at least grant them an opportunity to take the test, it would be a disservice to us all if mages as potentially talented as them do not receive the opportunity to prove themselves. As our strength is the binding ties." Many of the mages and apprentices nodded to his words, even as others scowled and gave looks of envy, disbelief, or desire. Faris was wary of the ones giving looks of desire.

"So… here is our test, it shall be a simple endeavor, destroy the test dummy." Many students laughed, until they saw what was brought out.

Two solid iron mannequins, thickly built and posed as scarecrows, were raised up into the arena from unseen pulleys.

"You each must destroy one. But you may only use magic."

Venka was feeling nervous, she had never attempted something like that, and she worried even more for Faris, who after the training could summon the pillar of flame Anya launched at her all those weeks ago, for maybe a few seconds. Faris for his part was feeling around the metal dolls, trying to see if there were any weak points to abuse, he noticed that the on the left had a deep crack, likely from rough handling, he began layering moisture and air into the crack, laughing to himself internally as he used this combination to accelerate the rusting of the inside.

"Venka," he began, "Don't go all out, use maybe a tenth of your energy, destroy the one on the right."

"What?" Venka looked at Faris with alarm. "Are you sure that's enough?"

"Actually, that's probably still too much, Venka, imagine you are holding a butterfly, the amount of pressure you put to pet its delicate wings? That's how much magic you should probably use. Do whatever you want, you just need to blow it up, or melt it. Have more faith in yourself, you're extremely powerful."

Venka nodded, still nervous, but she trusted Faris' judgement. She walked forward, facing her metal target, and raised her hand. She had practiced mentalization with Faris, it seemed drawing and storytelling were important parts of kindling her ability to visualize things, and it helped focus her thoughts, she thought of the sun, bright and hot, and thought of a fireball, just as bright, just as hot, she imagined it spinning fiercely in her head, her hand began to warm, she began to feel the magic in the back of her mind flow out. "Just a drip…" She repeated this phrase to herself, getting what to her felt like a thimbleful of magic, but to Faris would have been a lake. She locked eyes on the target, and uttered her magic.

"Istalrí!" (fire)

A massive flame, larger than a boulder and irradiating an extreme level of heat, surged into existence. It blasted towards the iron golem, writhing and coiling like a starving beast, mad with desire to consume its prey, it hit the dummy, the impact causing a booming explosion, but it was not done there, Venka was not done, the flames coiled around the iron bits, which were bright and hot, and began to melt them down, rapidly soon all that was left was a glassed crater, and glowing molten metal in the center. Venka looked in surprise at what she did, she barely felt exhausted, in fact making sure she could keep the flames from getting out of hand had grabbed her attention the most. She looked at Faris, who was deep in concentration, with newfound respect. If he hadn't been with her all this time, she might have killed someone with her power this was the second time it was demonstrated to her. The mages could only stare in awe at this sight. Bergan for his part had his jaw open wide and began to laugh hysterically as the mages began to murmur in the crowd over Venka's display of absolute power.

"Is the kid's good enough for you old farts yet?!" This elicited an argument that was immediately cut by the head mage, who merely nodded, turning to Faris.

"Have you given up? You have not uttered a single word yet."

Faris shook his head. "I am sorry, I was just preparing myself." He turned to look at the statue, he had used some of the heat and blasted wind from Venka's attack, controlling what was already there to hasten his rusting process, now the statue was almost completely rust, just a micro thin layer lay on top.

_"Nangoröth jierda"_ (withered snap). The Statue snapped in half, as the rest of the rust took over, crumbling into a fine red dust that scattered the floor, Faris for his part removed an empty flask from his pocket and gathered a good bit of the rust.

This caused the mages to go silent, one child was able to form a flame attack that rivaled the combined efforts of 30 high class human or dwarven mages. And the other through seemingly simple means was able to corrupt the metal from within, causing it to rust and collapse, an act that any one observing would merely call transmutation, which was a magic not even the elves would attempt lightly. The head mage narrowed his eyes, even as he continued to smile, giving an almost snake or catlike appearance. "Well, you two are excused, let us deliberate."


	25. Chapter 25

Faris and Venka waited for what seemed to be an extraordinarily long time.

The thirteen mages were debating how to treat the results of the exam.

"They achieved stupendous results, they had to have been cheating, perhaps a gem, they stored energy likely, no mage that young should have that level of magic!" An older mage shouted, his long-hooked nose gave him a bird like appearance, which coupled with his sunken eyes, heavy brow, and overly large mustache gave him the stereotypical image one would imagine when thinking of an old accomplished wizard.

"We already searched them Magister Rakus, they had nothing on them, and we inspected their room, they spent the entire night, making weird movements and practicing physical drills like punches and kicks, again with odd flowing movements, but no magic transpired until in the morning when they cleaned themselves." A portly looking mage with a single spectacle rumbled the words, he wore what seemed to be fine business attire, and he had a badge over a chest pocket, a large ruby was rivetted in the badge. He harrumphed in annoyance. "They didn't even do anything somewhat interesting."

"Well perhaps we should have invaded their minds." A woman with flowing blond hair and pale skin tapped the pommel of her dagger, which had a sapphire emblazoned on the guard's edge, she wore what looked to be a hunter's garb, with green and gold filigree lining the hard, dark leather that was her armor. Her bow slung to her side and she leaned back on her chair, her dark brown leather boots on the table.

"To what end?" Another woman, an older woman with brown hair that had begun to grey spoke up, she wore a light blue robe, with white lining her sleeves and the bottom of the robe. "They have already done a great service too us in the defeat of Anya, something we can all say would have given any of us trouble." She pushed up her right sleeve, revealing a beautifully designed gauntlet, encrusted with a diamond, an emerald, and a ruby down the sleeve, a few of the thirteen gathered looked at the gauntlet with a mix of envy and awe. "This device, the ilumëo abr Varden, the guardian of truth, was given to us by Rhunön, the great elven blacksmith as a gift to commemorate peace, as you know it allows me to detect traps and tricks as part of its enchantment, do you know what I saw?"

The leader, opened his eyes and looked at the older woman. "What did you see master Sona?"

Sona smiled and continued, "As soon as the test started the boy reached out magic to feel the two statues, he picked the left one, as tendrils of his sensing noticed that it was compromised, he began directing minute amounts of water and air into the statue, speeding up the onset of rust. When the girl began to cast her magic, I was momentarily blinded by the extreme use of magic. She's far more powerful than any of us, or any other human mage for that matter. The power she outputted was at the level of elves, if Vanir is anything to compare to, the magic flow was almost as great as his when he stopped the home from collapsing on those children." She chuckles, "But then the boy surprised me, after the explosion, he used his magic to borrow the heat and force ejected from the girl's spell, and used it to help him speed the rusting process, his last spell was simply the catalyst for pushing the weakened statue down."

"If that's true, I don't know what's more valuable, a human mage as powerful as an elf, or a human mage with that much ingenuity at that age. How strong is the boy?" The huntress looking mage asked Sona.

"Oh, he's weak, about as powerful as the average copper initiate."

This garnered shocked silence from the group. "Bergan, why did you deign to mention that the child's magical prowess was so low." The huntress turned to him with a look of annoyance.

"Well Celica," Bergan began, "It was because that's not really important if he was able to complete the task, and, I'm as surprised as you were, he was a lot weaker when I first met him." He paused for effect, enjoying the on-cue gasps a few of the mages made before continuing. "I had noticed he had been training himself physically, likely to increase his stamina and in equal value magical stamina, he was much, much weaker when I first started him and the girl on physical drills, and even after that he'd get up in the middle of the night, and begin practicing something like those weird movements you observed and recorded. Though most of the time the movements I observed him doing were slow, deliberately so, the way he breathed when doing it was interesting as well. I tried to emulate his exercise once, but it left me much more winded that I would have thought with how slow and gentle it was." He shook his head, "Perhaps it was stamina training, as his magic began to increase each night after, of course by a miniscule margin, perhaps two days of not having to do the stamina building exercises did more for him than I would have anticipated."

Celica folded her gloved hands and took on an interested expression. "An exercise that built up his stamina you say? And he needed an extreme level of proficiency to use such a limited amount of magic to destroy the iron casts…"

"Oh, I know that look Celica, they will be admitted into the Researchers of Arcane Mysteries Guild." Rakus declared with a grumpy look. "Their talented time would be better spent there than at your foolish combat-centric guild."

"Oh, really Rakus? I disagree, your guild and its stuffy old men would suffocate them, they need a position where they can devote their talent and ability to the people, think of how quickly new infrastructure would be completed with their combined might." The portly man said, rubbing his fingers. "Time is money, and above the rest of you I can offer a lot of money.

"Life is not all about money Mortimer." Sona stated. "Besides, more than focusing on individual might or wealth, children that skilled are better off devoting their time to fostering this fragile peace we have formed, instead of a sword and fire, or a hammer and gold, a shield and healing should be the answer."

The mages began to bicker over which guild was most important. It got to the point that the black-haired mage with blue eyes raised his hand to silence the rest, they did so at his behest, he spoke slowly and confidently, to make sure they understood.

"They are extremely precious, a girl that powerful yet human is more than just a strong asset as a mage, it is a political statement to the other nations of Alagaesia of our power and authority, things that were slowly undermined due to the actions of the Black Hand and Priests of Helgrind, especially after the loss of over 500 mages found to be spies or turncoats. This new group of theirs, the Scarlett Heart is a threat we must do well to defeat together, we cannot bicker with each other and slow down the development of once in a million talents like this pair. I suggest that no matter what guild they chose, we make sure they at least get supplemental teachings from each of us."

"Then perhaps they should join the fifth guild." Rakus raised his hand to suggest.

Sona smirked, "I don't believe that man is taking anymore guild members, nor do I think many mages wish to join his guild, in fact, most of the spies were found to have been affiliated with his guild, so he had taken the position partnering with Surdan forces to defend the nation from the allied barbarian tribes to the south. I doubt the children would wish to face the scrutiny they might receive from making such a decision."

"He still takes in members, he cannot avoid doing so, as that would strip him of his leadership title, and he is too skilled to be someone else's underling. Regardless of the children's choice, are we all in favor of granting them the pearl title?"

The mages all nodded their heads. Celica added with a bit of mirth, "Not granting them that title would be like stabbing ourselves in the chest and leaving our necks clear for a common thief to slit our throat and swipe our coin purse. Of course, we are in favor Lord Jaya."

Jaya for his part smiled, his blue eyes twinkling, "thank you for the graphic simile Celica, I believe I understand your point." He turned to the rest of the group, "of course now comes to the matter of our diplomatic guests from Ellesméra, Vanir contacted me stating that he would arrive with them within the week…."

Faris and Venka paced nervously, they had been shut in a room with a single metal window, four men, two wearing the black and gold robes, one wearing a white and blue robe, and the last wearing a hunter's garb with a green and gold cape looked at them with terrifying intensity, any attempts to speak to them was met with silence, and any sudden movements caused their guards to twitch and reach for their wands or weapons, causing a stressful thirty seconds of Faris and Venka keeping their arms out to the open until the guards relaxed.

"This is stupid." Venka finally muttered as she sat on the floor. "I'm tired and hungry, and we've been here ages, what?! Are we being arrested; did I make a mistake?"

Faris wanted to comfort her, but he had no idea why they were here either, he in fact was a bit more worried, he didn't want his connection to Angela to be made apparent, given that he didn't know Nasuada's deal with Angela, he was under the impression that a single slip up would spell major trouble for the both of them. This mixed with his tiredness and exhaustion from casting the spells he did to destroy the iron dummy, a task he likely wouldn't have been able to complete weeks ago, left him groggy and foggy-headed. Eventually the guards began to shuffle their feet as a figure walked into the room.

"Bergan!" Venka shouted in relief.

Bergan raised his hand in silence before Venka could blast out any questions or comments. "Come with me." He said brusquely, before turning around and leaving, Venka and Faris turned to each other, then hurried out after, eager to move their limbs after spending so long standing and sitting in such a small room. Bergan continued to not answer their questions, remaining silent, and worrying Faris.

_What did we do?_ He thought. He had tried to be as subtle as possible with his spell, and Venka had only used a tiny fraction of her magic, he had felt as much, though Faris had ceased to be surprised by her magic's sheer size, even as it continued to dwarf his at slightly greater and greater margins, its explosive growth had slowed down a bit recently, but it was still steadily increasing. Hopefully they weren't trying to go after her. The two of them combined were strong, but not strong enough to take on 13 people who were each stronger than Anya.

They entered a large room, thirteen chairs formed a circle, and the emblem of the Broddring Kingdom in the center. Faris turned to observe each of the thirteen men and women. He already knew Bergan, who had situated himself on the second to last chair. The rest he had seen sitting at the head of the amphitheater when the test had been conducted. The man in the center of them before stood in the highest chair.

"I am Lord Durant Kuwat Jaya," he stated. "After much deliberation we have determined that you two are worthy of achieving the pearl rank." He smiled at the relief in their faces and their relaxed stances. The rest of the thirteen seemed to relax, all except for Bergan, who remained taught and straight faced. Lord Jaya began to speak again. "We offer our condolences for our rude treatment of you." He said, lowering his head.

"No please, raise your head Lord Jaya, we understand that we had come on short notice, even if we have passed the test, it would have not been appropriate to rush your deliberation process." Faris bowed. Venka followed suit with a curtsy.

"You honor me with your patience and understanding, you children are quite wise beyond your years, it is just as well then that you have made it into the illustrious position of a Pearl Initiate." Lord Jaya continued, adding a half smile. "I just wish to let it be known that our deliberations were completed as hastily as possible. I do not wish to take too much of your time, as you need to rest, but as you have just been admitted as our students, it is of utmost importance we allow you to move to our housing location for the students. And please, allow us to bring your belongings."

Faris smiled, "We don't wish to waste your men's valuable time and energy, Venka and I would rather we take the opportunity to gain our bearings as we return to the room our gracious Queen afforded to us in order to collect our belongings ourselves, it would be unseemly and rude to have other come to our rooms unannounced and collect our belongings, with the Queen not being aware of our quick transfer."

Lord Jaya's smile widened. "Ah child, I see the logic in your words, and while it saddens me that you do not wish for us to take care of the burden for you, I can understand the wish to take ownership of your belongings and person, an admirable quality. Then make haste, so that we may fetch servants to lead you to your rooms."

_They're trying to separate us?_ Faris thought as he spoke again. "Rooms sir?"

Lord Jaya frowned, "Yes my dear boy, rooms, it would be inappropriate for a young man and young lady to share bed chambers, especially in a place of learning, we do well to keep such distractions at a minimum."

"Sir, our staying together is more a matter of comfort mentally than what you may be thinking." Faris began, putting on a sad face, "The… events that took place in our home were to be honest, brutally horrifying."

"Yes… I remember the descriptions of the bodies." Lord Jaya nodded in genuine understanding, the destruction was reminiscent of the atrocities conducted during the war, and had been a telltale calling card of Anya's style of torture and killing. Anyone witnessing it for the first time would likely experience a traumatic shock.

"They were conducted by someone who had been claiming to be a State Mage." Faris continued.

"Are you doubting us?!" A woman shouted, she was dressed in hunting attire, and had an indignant look on her face. She looked like she was about to say more before being silenced with a glare from Lord Jaya.

"As Celica put, do you not have faith in us? It was an unfortunate slip up yes, but we have purged all of our spies and turncoats, you are safe now."

Faris kept his face blank as he noticed Venka twitch at the word "unfortunate", controlling the timbre of his voice he evenly replied, "The… unfortunate incident happened not once, but thrice, Anya had been a spy, but as had been the investigators, who had almost allowed some rogue mages kidnap Venka, another traumatic experience, we had not even been aware of the two investigator's machinations, while it is true you caught them before they could enact some final plan, there is still a level of fear that we cannot merely get rid of. Surely, you could understand sir?"

Lord Jaya had no choice but to nod. Faris's logic was sound, the State Mages had made several blunders that had cost Venka her parents and almost killed these two. It was a miracle they were still alive and they had a right to being indignant. His wanting to separate them though had little to do with keeping sanctity and more with being able to control them more easily, he could tell from a glance that they were emotional supports for each other, and without one another could be easier to manipulate. He didn't peg Faris for a clever person, and Venka had demonstrated a level of self-control he seldom saw in people of her personality type, he had thought she would crack and either break down or snap when he called her parent's death an accident, if things continued the way they did he would have no choice but to acquiesce to every one of their demands, if he did not get them to bend to at least one of his requests it would be hard to try and control them later on. So, he decided to try and push Venka once more.

"I understand your concern, but a painful fact is that sometimes, accidents do happen. We are not perfect, and we continue to strive to improve and develop the mages in our retinue. Surely one blunder wouldn't be enough to make you lose faith in us completely."

_Fuck you._ Faris thought as he continued to smile, Venka was biting back tears, and even now her eyes were glistening, he wanted to talk to her, to comfort her in some way, but the scrutinizing eyes of the thirteen were too observant, looking for any way to try and find them to be either too emotionally unstable, or in a relationship unhealthy enough that they could use that as an excuse to separate them. Faris didn't know their end game but he didn't trust any of them as far as he could through them magically, and that wasn't very far at all.

"My lord… it is a matter of…" Faris paused as Venka rose her hand slightly, grabbing his attention. She breathed in and out, her voice slightly betraying her emotion as she spoke.

"Lord Jaya, when Anya had come to our humble village, she had praised my talents in magic, allowing me to partake in selfish desires and believe in a sense of superiority. At that time, Faris and I were at odds. When Anya had revealed her true colors, Faris had been the one to save me, Anya had paid attention to me, and belittled Faris, yet without him, we would not have overcome her. The same can be said with the secret attack of those 15 or so cultists." Her voice regained a bit of strength. "As we continued our journey here, we were delayed numerous times by Mages who had been using vile duplicity to try and take advantage of me, and it had been Faris's ingenuity that had saved us, I have faith in his friendship and respect for me. And while I do not agree with your concerns, I do understand them. I at the same time must stress…" She paused for a bit, trying to find the right words, before looking at Faris. He looked into her eyes, and saw the hurt, and anger, and indignation, it very much matched his own at this point, and he looked at her, smiling and nodding. Venka returned his smile, turning back to Lord Jaya.

"I must stress… how stupid are you?" A few of the mages gasped as Lord Jaya's face twitched.

"Excuse me?!" He spoke loudly. "How dare you use that tone-!"

"How dare you spew that fine bullshit!" Venka retorted, "A vast majority of Mages we had dealt with used everything in their power to manipulate and control me, I'm not so dense as to not witness more mages trying that now. You make us take your stupid test! Then you leave us in that dark and horrible cell! Leaving men to watch us like common criminals, then you expect us to waltz in here all polite and gracious?! We played your game, and you weren't happy about it. Fuck you! Fuck you!"

Lord Jaya and the rest of the thirteen were speechless at the severity of the outburst, Bergan fought hard to hide his smile.

"I agree with most of what she said sir." Faris began, "Though I wouldn't have been so blunt about it, we have had a very trying two months, and could do well with a bit of rest before we are left here, and to be honest, I believe I speak for us both that we would rather lose our magical ability and be reduced to common people than end up as someone's extravagant tool."

"And what makes you think…" Lord Jaya began, his voice reaching a dangerous low, "That I will let you go for this insult?"

Faris felt a bout of nervousness, but Venka grabbed his hand, he felt her mind reach out to his, and they began to intertwine.

"Because…" Faris began.

"Dickhead…" Venka continued.

"we'll kick your arse otherwise" They responded with equal unison.

"I believe that's enough." A familiar voice called from the corner of the room."

All heads turned to notice Hanna walking out of the shadows, holding a large mirror with Nasuada's face reflected off of it, and she didn't look very happy.

"My queen." The mages bowed, Faris and Venka just stared, still holding hands.

"Lord Jaya, why did you try to rile them so? They are children, not even yet beginning to reach the traits of adulthood." Nasuada began, the reproach evident in her voice.

Lord Jaya kept his face tight but blank as he replied, "My queen, I needed to be sure of their mental fortitude, a mage must keep his or her temperament, a slip of the mind could spell their doom."

"In that regard don't you believe you all failed?" Nasuada replied dryly.

"My queen?" One of the other mages inquired, an old man with a flowing mustache and beard, sunken eyes, and a long hook nose.

"Yes, sir Rukas, when the children allowed their irritation to be known at your harsh and unfeeling tone, you showed shock at their defiance and choice of language. And while their choice of vocabulary did surprise me somewhat, I could understand their anger, what I couldn't understand was why you all would be so puffed up and prideful in thinking you could insult these two who had been through so much and not expect the resolve they showed." Nasuada's brow furrowed, "Frankly, If the girl had not snapped, I would have spoken sooner. As it is, their logic is extremely sound, they have no reason to trust us given our track record, and even less reason to trust us after your pathetic display."

Lord Jaya clenched his jaws, many of the other mages began to try and assert words of dissent.

"What have you lot been doing?!" Another voice called out, appearing besides Nasuada in the mirror was Trianna, she looked inflamed, the Mages all quieted down and bowed their heads. "I left this school in your hands because I trusted your judgement, but now I see you bullying children?!"

"But lady Trianna!" Rukas began, head still low, "You yourself disapproved of the wealth of amenities being afforded to these children, it makes us look too accommodating and hypocritical!"

"That was, until I recently learned of the accommodations afforded to the six other first year Pearl ranked students"

The mages kept silent now. "What you allowed them to have or do is comparable or even more of a compromise than what these kids, who passed the test meant for Diamond Rank mages, have asked for. You fear that their relationship is inappropriate? Would you like me to mention how your grandson has been acting Rukas? Or what your nephew did last week Mortimer? I'm still dealing with all the complaints." The large man with a spectacle shifted uncomfortably in his seat as Trianna's gaze turned to him. She sighed as she turned to Faris and Venka. "I on behalf of the mages offer my most humble apologies, we have been acting cruel and negligent to your needs, especially after all you have been through, I don't expect your quick forgiveness, especially after being subjected to this circus." She said harshly as she looked at the mages again. "But I beg for your willingness to join our school, I will give you my sponsorship as protection, if any of them begin to harass you or unduly treat you cruelly, it will be as if they have insulted me, and they will have to answer to that."

Faris and Venka merely nodded.

"Good, Hannah?"

"Yes, my queen?"

"Escort these two back to their room, they deserve a warm meal and a night's rest."

They received no interruptions as they left the room. As they made their way back into the castle, Venka allowed the tears to flow freely as she leaned on Faris's shoulder, he himself barely held back his tears as they made their way to the room. Hanna turned to them, her face a mix of pity, sadness, and indignation. "My brother had fetched me to alert Queen Nasuada and Lady Trianna that the mage council was acting strange and would likely do something to harass you in order to gain control over the two of you in an ignoble way." She looked down, "He likely won't be able to speak to you for a while, but he is, extremely sorry about this, if he were in a higher position…"

"It's alright" Venka said, "We understand, I'm not mad at him, I just…"

Hanna looked at the pair with sadness one more time before leaving the room, "Nasuada fetched some private guards she trusts highly, they are men and women who swore in the ancient language to serve her loyally, you can trust them to protect you, rest peacefully, we will bring some food in a few hours, I can understand not wanting to speak to anyone as you rest." She left the room.

Venka remained leaning on Faris's shoulder, her head resting on his chest, for a little while longer before tapping him and leaning away, he let her go easily, and she walked to the restroom. She stayed there for almost half an hour, Faris stared at the wall with a mix of impotent rage and exhaustion. No matter where they went someone wanted to use her, manipulate her in some way, he thought the mages in Ilrea would have been better, but they were no better than The Black Hand, the only thing stopping them from committing unspeakable horrors was likely Nasuada's hand, he began to feel like perhaps Nasuada was right, and mages should be limited. When Venka left the bathroom, she looked a bit fresher, likely dousing her face with water several times. She sat beside Faris, close but not touching. For the first time in a while, Faris remembered the dream he had were he had been dancing with Elva, only to find himself at the feet of Venka. He glanced at her from the side, to see she was looking ahead, he turned his eyes towards their large window, overlooking Nasuada's city, it was beautiful, and full of a well utilized combination of magic and science, as if Galbatorix had hidden one hundred years' worth of technological development only for it to be uncovered now, which was the case.

After an hour, Hanna came back with a few servants a boat-load of food. Faris's hunger was nearly unbearable, but he took the time to set the table and let Venka get the first pick, as he was about to inhale his supper, he looked up to see her picking at the food, her scarlet hair bobbing up and down as she absentmindedly stabbed at the piece of chicken.

"Venka…" Faris began, thinking of something. He reached into his backpack, and pulled out a piece of white parchment. "It's not a stone slate, and I wanted to practice it, but I didn't have the time." He showed her the parchment, and she stared at him blankly. Faris smiled embarrassedly as he closed his eyes and pictured his image on the Fairth. Solembum had taught him ways to remember things well, and using it he was able to remember everything from his previous life and tuck it away in a special corner of his identity. That didn't mean that was all he had photographic connections of. The image began to form, dull at first, but beginning to take focus and sharpen in view and clarity, Faris felt the tiny scraps of energy left drain out of him, fighting to keep conciousness,

_I need to time these things better._ He thought to himself, even then, his entire being was focused on recreating this scene with perfect clarity. Venka's eyes never left the parchment as she began to understand what she was seeing, her eyes glistening for the second time today. Faris continued, putting all his effort into completing the image, as the last detail was finally etched in, he slumped back, exhausted and feeling like a man starved for almost a week. He looked at Venka and gently handed her the picture he created. When he had come back from Angela's training for the last time, he had met Venka truly for the first time. Her and his parents had become friends and they had invited his family over, he remembered Venka's father, a man nearly as tall as his father, a retired soldier for the Varden, and her mother, a woman with kind eyes and a charming smile, Venka had been held by her mother, her arms draped around her neck as she stared at his family with a mix of curiosity and excitement, her trademark impish smile graced her cherubic face, he had always thought she was pretty, and had felt the warmth that radiated from her family, perhaps this impression was why the way they held each other in the picture felt like a precious scene. Venka began to cry as she looked at the picture.

"You dummy!" She sobbed.

Faris's heart dropped. "Oh no! I'm sorry, I meant it to try and-"

"I wasn't that ugly as a kid!" She began to giggle through the tears as she saw Faris's face shift from confusion to relief to rage to irritation, sniffing as she placed the picture on a nightstand. "Thank you!" She said, holding back the tears.

"Don't mention it." Faris replied, sighing in exhaustion. He looked down at the food like, well, like a starving man in front of a buffet, but before he could take a bite Venka kissed him on the cheek. He turned bright red as she smiled, turning nonchalantly to sit back down, and began to scarf down her food.

"It's really good, eat or I'll take it." She said through a mouthful, avoiding his eyes.

"You motherfu… why did you… but you… and I… ergh!" Faris's mind swam in confusion, but Venka's avoidance of speaking of what happened and his hunger got the better of him.

"You know what, you're right, it is delicious." He mumbled.

"Don't talk with your mouth full," Venka added cheekily, smiling at Faris's irritation. She sniffed a few times as she returned to her meal, her smile still faintly on her lips as she reached for some more bread.

"Table manners…" Faris said, blocking her hand. "The bread is closer to me, so you have to say please."

She scowled and held out her hand. "Please…"

"There!" Faris smiled, attempting to piss her off, "Doesn't being polite feel great?!"

They ate in silence for some more time, before Venka finally spoke up again.

"I don't ever want to be put in a position like that ever again, I need to get stronger, better, smarter."

"Yeah," Faris continued, "I don't want to deal with pricks like that again."

"Hey Faris?"

"Yeah Venka?"

"…Thanks, I know you were trying to make things pass by peacefully, but then you let me snap at them, that was really, really, freeing, even though you probably knew it would end badly."

Faris smiled genuinely, "Venka, we're in this together, as long as I'm still alive, I won't let you become someone else's tool. Or let anyone walk all over our feelings."

Venka smiled ruefully, "Oh? And whys that?"

"Shut up and eat." Faris replied, scarfing down another hunk of bread.

They ate the rest of the meal in silence, stuffing themselves full before wheeling the carts out. Venka took a bath first, followed by Faris. They crashed on the bed, too exhausted to do anything else, just before Faris fell asleep he felt Venka reach for his hand, she was looking away from him, he smiled, and grabbed her hand, squeezing it reassuringly, and the two drifted off.


	26. Chapter 26

Faris woke up on the floor. Why had he woken up on the floor? Venka had decided to sleep practice Kung Fu, and gentle fisted his face hard enough to knock him off the bed. Faris considered that a good time to wake up, the night sky had begun to change in appearance, signaling the sun's rise, so that meant it would be a good time to train. He began practicing his tai chi. First was the warm up. As he faced the window, he stood with his feet flat on the floor, his legs were slightly wider than a normal stance with them barely going past his hips. He relaxed his arms and rotated his hips to the right and left gently, his arms following loosely, he rotated his neck, shoulders, and spine along with his hip movement, only relaxing the elbows as he concentrated on his breathing. He then shifted, opening his legs slightly into a shoulder length stance. He began the windmill exercise, relaxing as he began to shift his arms upwards and around, feeling the sweat begin to bead his forehead. He began going through the motions of each of the movements he had learned, finally finishing with the closing posture, in which he stood, feet shoulder-with apart again, relaxed shoulders as he brought his hands in front of his pelvis, cupped together, he closed his eyes, imagining energy flowing through him, he raised his arms slowly and deliberately, as if he had picked up precious water in his palms, lifting it up to his chest before turning his hands and gently pushing down, he repeated this course of movement for another minute, opening his eyes to see Venka observing him with interest, copying the movements he made.

"Oh!" He said, "When did you wake up?"

"When I punched you in the face." She admitted sheepishly. Faris for his part laughed.

"Well, it's a good thing you're awake then, we should probably prepare before Hanna comes to take us to their school."

Venka nodded, clenching her fist and giving off a determined look. The two of them had already resolved to tackle whatever came their way today. Hanna opened the door to a clean and sharp looking pair of kids, she smiled approvingly at their attire, they had gotten their best-looking clothing for the occasion.

"I'll give you bonus points for the new clothing, but deduct a few for the state of the room."

Venka groaned, causing Hanna to chuckle. "Since both Nasuada and Trianna have acted on your behalf you have a room to yourselves, we brought some extra linens and pillows there to help you get comfortable there, after the opening ceremony and speech you will be admitted to your room, after getting packed in you will be given a password only you can know to your room, everyone else will have a unique, magic keyword activated password. The Password isn't blocked by someone else's voice, and is effectively a spell, so you will feel a bit of energy drain each time."

They made their way to one of the large raised platforms that lined the tower of the castle, Faris stared in awe at the large stone and metal bridge that extended to the major towers surrounding the city, in which smaller bridges spider webbed across the top, he noticed now finally that there was a slightly blue transparent dome surrounding the city, likely a shield of some sort. They weren't the only ones on the platform, men and women and even some dwarves walked around busily, it seemed to be a popular spot, as they waited for something. A large bell began to ring, as Faris hear the sound of metallic chugging and a nostalgic horn.

"No way…" He murmured in amazement.

Hanna beamed in pride. "One of the greatest technologies hidden by Galbatorix was the discovery of a mineral that could be burned to release large amounts of energy, he had tasked mages with finding a way to take the byproduct of this burning, and renew it, under our Queen, researchers were able to finally do it, storing energy back into those minerals, we call them dark stones. The technology is mainly used to help transport workers all across the city and surrounding country side, and a special jewel is enchanted, capturing a bit of the energy released when the carriage moves, converting it into power for the rest of the city."

They stepped into the "carriage" and Faris marveled at how comfortable everything looked, the ride was completely smooth, he saw several robed individuals standing near a furnace, their faces in deep concentration.

"What are they doing?" Faris asked.

"They are Commerce and Engineering mages, many mages who believe they don't have the magical prowess to go to the front lines or become full time healers take this position, they help support the infrastructure and public works, often times magic is more precise than an human's hands, their job is to collect the soot through a filter, so only steam escapes, the soot was found through research to have an adverse effect on people who breathed it in, and the mages had learned a means of imbuing energy into the soot to create more dark stone, it's long and complicated yes, but it's also very much an important endeavor."

"How many mages would it take?" Venka asked.

"From what I've seen, it takes two mages 1 hour to turn the byproduct of burning darkstone back into one ounce of dark stone."

"But that takes so many mages!" Faris exclaimed in shock, thinking about how much coal was needed to fuel one train.

"You may not have realized it, but Galbatorix ignored many people who had barely any magical power. Our 'Research into Arcane Mysteries Guild' mages learned simple enchantments that granted some of those without the gift the ability to cast one or two simple spells. While the number of proper magic users worth a damn may number only about 5,000, the number of people who can use magical ability given the correct catalyst numbers over 30,000 in this city alone. These men and women, under the guide of about 1000 mages belonging to the Commerce and Engineering Guild, are the back bone of the city's commerce, working with black smiths, architects, artists, farmers, and general laborers to keep the city developing and running." She smiled in pride, "More and more children are born each day who may be able to contribute to the city this way. And they are paid a handsome wage for their work. Major cities like Teirm, Dras Leona, Gilead, and Carvahall are considering beginning their own local chapters of the Commerce and Engineering guild."

Faris nodded his head, impressed with the way the world had developed in such a short time. Galbatorix had been wrong to halt those one hundred years of development it seemed. Hanna spent the rest of their train trip talking about all the different technologies, such as the magic stones enchanted to clean the water entering the city, defending against poison and disease. How special pumps let water flow throughout the city, giving the vast majority of people access to plumbing and bathing in their own homes. The utilization of erisdar (the flameless lanterns used by elves and dwarves), to light the streets at night and improve public safety.

"I noticed that a few of the soldiers have jewelry on their armor." Venka spoke up as they got off the train and headed towards the academy, which was a large collection of several different buildings close together.

"Well that is for an important reason, Nasuada knows that no non magic user can hope to compete against a magician normally, so soldiers who have proven exemplary are awarded a special gemstone, they normally require relatively precious stones along the lines of Beryl, Aquamarines, or emeralds at least for the enchantment to work, the first thing that is done is about one tenth of the soldier's remaining stamina is absorbed by the stone before they rest. The armor is enchanted to do one of two things depending on the verbal or somatic setting the soldier has placed it on. The standard defense setting will use up the stone's reserves to block any magical attack that would otherwise incapacitate or kill the soldier, if the stone's reserves emptied then it would tax the soldier until they lacked the energy to spare. If the soldier had been injured the magic instead slows down their bleeding and begins attempting to heal the wound, depending on the severity pain may be temporarily removed. The other setting is combat mode, the soldier gains a boost of strength and speed for a short amount of time with the sole purpose of wearing out and breaking the mage's wards. In order to be approved for one the soldier must have passed several trials and proven himself worthy from his achievements in the military. They must be at least competent in mental defense against a mage, and exemplary melee combatants. Our practice trials show that soldiers equipped this way have a 35% chance of defeating mages they run into in a straight forward fight, which is a lot better than the virtually 0% an unprotected man would have against a mage. The longer the soldier of this rank serves the more energy the stone would likely have in reserves. When a soldier retires exemplary younger soldier inherit the stone and the cycle continues. These soldiers are called the SIS, short for Sorcerer Interception Squadron. Many of the commerce and engineering mages devote time to helping fill in energy for the soldiers who have the most experience or decorated titles. Though most of them are down in the south, allied with Surdan forces to face down the Steel Horde."

As Faris and Venka entered the complex, they turned to face Hanna. "Steel Horde?" They said in unison.

Hanna nodded, "Yes, a coalition of several wandering tribes and small kingdoms below Alagaesia, Galbatorix seemed to have been aware of them but chose not to interfere due to their sheer size and number, it seems the Scarlet Heart has formed a partnership with them and they have begun an invasion. As it is, we are holding them back with great ease, 3 riders had returned from training and are in the front lines, and the Urgals and Dwarves sent some of their elites down to help. The Wandering Blade Guild, Commerce and Engineering Guild, Research into Arcane Mysteries Guild, and Protectors of Life Guild have sent teams of their best mages and apprentices down there. The elves have even sent a retinue of mages and archers to bolster the flanks and rendezvous with the human and dwarven mages. Urgal shamans have shown themselves relatively unwilling to work with the rest of them. In fact, in order to show the people that the elves were still their allies, they decided to send two young elven dignitaries here as diplomatic exchanges with some nobles here to Ellesméra."

"Aren't there five mage guilds?" Faris asked, "where's the fifth?"

"Oh? That would be the Branching Path Guild, almost all of them are down in the front lines."

As Faris and Venka made it to the main assembly of students, he noticed more than a few giving them odd looks. News about the half Surdan boy and girl with curly fire for hair had passed by quickly, and they had established a reputation. Or at least, Venka had.

"Excuse me, madam, I must say, even in your youth I can see the blossoming of a great beauty." A handsome young man with blond curly hair walked up to Venka. He had on a charming smile as he pushed past Faris, grabbed Venka's hand, and kissed it. "I am pleasantly surprised that more exemplary mages in training earned their way into the Pearl class."

Venka looked at him with a face that reminded Faris of the time she found a dead rat killed by a poisoned hunk of cheese, and he couldn't help but laugh at the teen's awkward reaction to Venka's visible disgust. He turned to face Faris, scowling.

"I see I have a rival for her affection!" He posed ridiculously, placing his hands on his face and eccentrically moving them away, revealing a rose in between his lips. "Pleasure to meet you, cherished rival, I am Morgan!"

Faris nodded as Venka looked away in disgust. "I am Faris, and she is Venka. I take it you are one of the original six to make it into the Pearl class, how did you pass?"

"Ah my dear friend, using my mystical mastery of the arcane, I conjured a lightning storm, smiting the iron man where it stood until it eventually melted from the force of my power!"

"…No but really, how'd you do it?"

"Oh! Faris my friend! You doubt me! Oh, my heart is filled with pain from this betrayal!" He slung his arm over his head in mock shock. Venka giggled at his ridiculous display, which caused Morgan to open one eye and wink at her. "Oh, if only a beautiful maiden doth blessed me with her kiss! It would cure my pain filled heart."

His face got dangerously close to Venka's before being pulled back by the combined efforts of two girls, one with straight black hair and brown eyes, the other was a bit taller with straight brown hair and blue eyes.

"Morgan, what are you doing?" The black-haired girl began, looking down at Morgan with an annoyed look.

"Oh! Nya! My darling how are you!" Morgan tried to get up, only to realize the brown-haired girl was keeping him from rising. "Katya! My dear do you mind moving your foot? I love that you would wish to be so intimate with me, but I cannot give you a hug if you don't let your foot up my dear!"

Katya smiled at Morgan and let her foot up slightly only to press it down a bit harder. "I apologize, I accidentally slipped, I tend to do that when womanizers call me "dear".

"Ehm… Dully noted…" Morgan states. Breathing deeply as Katya lets him up, he turns back to Faris.

"My Rival! Allow me to introduce! Katya, the daughter of Sona, the head of the Protectors of Life Guild, 'P.O.L.' or 'POL' for short. And Nya, little sister to Cecilia, second in command and acting head of the Wandering Blade Guild."

The two girls appraised Faris and Venka coolly, nodding their hellos to Faris before turning the bulk of their attention to Venka.

"It's pleasing to see another girl here, especially one as powerful as you." Nya said, smiling. "I'd be happy to welcome you to the Wandering Blade Guild."

Katya interrupted her, "Don't go recruiting already, she'd be better off in the Protectors of Life." She smiled at Venka, "You'll join right?"

Venka looked flustered at their attempts to recruit her. Morgan stood in front. "Don't overwhelm the poor girl on her first day ladies! It's unbecoming." Both Katya and Nya looked down in embarrassment over their forward attitudes. Faris felt some respect for Morgan's countenance and values, and immediately had that respect dashed away. "You should all join the Researchers into Arcane Mysteries! Three lovely lasses like you would go a long way in this guild."

Venka sighed in annoyance at the three's bickering, she hoped that she didn't become so odd when she became a teenager, she was turning twelve soon, and that worried her a bit.

"I see the rest of you lot have gathered here." A smug voice approached them from afar, they turned to see a fat boy with freckles and short brown hair on his head.

"Tiny Mortimer" Venka blurted out, pointing at the boy. This elicited chortles from the three who had been fighting.

'Tiny Mortimer' for his part took it in stride. "Oh? You recognize my illustrious family resemblance to my Uncle Mortimer? I give you a pass, my name is Bartholomew Vignette. But I already know all of you, information is an important thing to know." He turned to Faris, "Nice to meet you."

Faris absentmindedly nodded. Venka turned to look at him. "What's wrong?" Faris said nothing, so Venka followed his gaze to a strange fellow wearing the oddest attire. Their tunic and pants seemed normal, but they had a hood and mask that blocked anything except for their piercing blue eyes.

Bartholomew nodded, "You have good intuition, my uncle was correct." He grinned, "That's Lord Jaya's child, not much is known about her, so the information is expensive. I can tell you however that she's the most powerful Pearl Initiate, even if we compare to the second, third, and fourth years who had graduated to Pearl Initiate, of course that rank is debatable when we compare to you, young lady Venka."

"Doesn't seem so tough to me, she's just standing there staring at us." Venka scoffed.

Faris did not take his eyes off the girl, eventually the crowd filled up and he lost track of her.

"Ahem."

Everyone turned to look at the podium overlooking the audience hall. Lord Jaya stood at the front, Sona stood to his right, and Rakus stood to his left.

"I thank you students from the bottom of my heart for making it this year, as I'm sure you are aware, we face trying times both within and without our nation, but together we can overcome. It is quite fortunate then that the grand games take place soon, for this reason, and to prepare our students for any threats, the level of intensity each level take in training various skills shall rise. And to add to the incentive, any students who enter the grand games and achieve at least a notable mention shall be awarded a diamond gemstone and two free visits to the charging station." The students erupted into excited chatter over the news. All except a few, most pearl Initiates showed a lack of excitement, fourth years in general showed apathy to the news, and the group of first year Pearl Initiatives continued to generally bicker among themselves.

"What's important about the charging station?" Venka asked.

Bartholomew puffed his chest with pride. "There are 20 charging stations, each one houses 50 magicians who take 3-hour shifts. These 1,000 magicians at a time power and add more layers to the shield protecting the city from any who mean to harm it. Now even a dragon would find the walls nearly impenetrable. Anyways, accomplished or extremely affluent mages can go to a charging station if they earn or buy a token, and one half of the energy generated in those three hours is instead siphoned off into the mage's crystal, it's a quick one-year dump of magic into your arsenal, and any copper initiative with half a brain's way into pearl next year."

"And why don't the pearls care?"

"geez you really are new, here let me explain, when classes are taken, coppers automatically dump half their magical stamina into an orb as payment for their classes daily, silver pay 20%, Gold pay 10%. Pearl Initiatives don't have to pay anything, in fact depending on class rankings, you can gain a chunk of the daily pooled in energy, only so many students can become Pearl for that reason."

_So that's why they wanted us as silver or gold,_ Faris realized, _they wanted Venka to give a chunk of her massive energy many times over for at least a year._

"Mages, especially human mages, have finite levels of magic that can't be compared to dragons, elves, riders, shades, and perhaps you miss Venka." Bartholomew continued. "So, placing as much energy as we can into our gemstones as quickly as possible is our way of competing against power houses. The big difference being no matter how much power we amass this way, it is finite in a way no Rider's magic is. When it comes to a rider or an elf, they start off with a high maximum magic power, and even after exhausting their power, they will recover at the pace a human recovers stamina." He lifts up a diamond, "It doesn't matter if I amass twice as much magical power than an elf did, I now must fight with this in order to compete with an elf, and even then there's no saying I can handle that much magic at a single moment, so a fight with an elf will become an endurance match of two competing long lasting spells if I wish to win, I better hope the elf doesn't attack with hit and run strategies then, slowly wearing down my magic that unlike him or her, I can't replenish nearly as quickly. I better also hope the elf didn't have similar ideas and don't place their energy within gemstones the way I did, because having twice as much magic as an elf is barely able to handle one, the equivalent of even two or three elves would spell my doom at the point, and the sad thing is it would have taken me a year to amass that much energy by myself, when it would take an elf a little less than a week to surpass it."

"What does that make me?" Faris asked Bartholomew, interested in his lecture.

"That makes you incredibly smart, but stupidly reckless." Bartholomew commented. "From what I can tell, you barely have the magic of the average copper initiate, that's why those two meat-headed women barely paid you a second glance, well, that and sexism." He ignored the angry stares Katya and Nya gave him. "My suggestion to you is dump as much energy into your stone when you receive it today, and keep dumping as much energy as you can. Maybe think about joining the great games trial, you certainly look like someone who'd make an interesting showing in the junior league."

As the students began to leave a number appeared before everyone.

"As you see, every student has someone who shares their number, this is your roommate, if you have any complaints, bring it forth at a later time."

Faris and Venka looked at each other and rushed to their room. Packing away their items

"Well, those kids seemed like interesting people." Faris smiled to Venka, who grinned back.

"They're all cuckoo."


	27. Chapter 27

Faris stifled a yawn. He turned to look at Venka, who was taking notes at a rapid pace. He felt a little envious, at least she was learning something new. Venka for her part could little more than copy the professor's jargon, she half understood what he was talking about, but a lot of the more obscure concepts in his teachings had been beyond her, she looked at Faris from across the room. He had a straight-faced expression and looked like he was attentive, but she knew him long enough to notice from his relaxed posture and unclenched hands that he was bored. She was kind of jealous of him, already understanding most of what they were learning.

The two of them sat in opposing sides of the class, which was somewhat ironically titled: "Group Battle and Tactics." They had agreed the best thing to do was not give anyone a reason to be suspicious of them or to ostracize them. Many students had already been making rumors behind their backs due to info about them living together, so there was no need to add fuel to the fire. Even then most students left them alone when they walked the halls, at least, they left Faris alone.

"You're so strong! What's your secret?!" One of the second year Pearl Initiates was gushing in front of Venka, who could only reply with a flustered smile. The class was taking a break before resuming lessons, a majority of students began to flock towards all the newcomers in the Pearl Class, well, all of them except for Faris, when he had shown his magical stamina was at the level of a copper initiate's they all mostly lost interest in him. Venka was extremely jealous of that.

"I just practiced a lot?" She replied finally."

"No way!" Another girl smiled. "You're pretty talented you know!?"

Venka blushed, smiling. "Thanks!"

"Hey have you picked a group yet? Because…" The third girl was interrupted by Katya and Nya standing in front of her.

"Don't even think of trying to recruit our Venka, the first years should stick together!" The older girl looked at the two, irritation clear on her face as she got up.

"First of all, that was rude, second of all, that is unbecoming of you, Venka has the right to choose whatever group she would like, why would she need to stick to a bunch of fresh faced new-year students like you when she can gain help and insight from students like us?"

"Don't try to play the saint!" Katya laughed. "We know you just want her power."

"Oh, and like you don't!" The girl retorted. "You just want power! You barely get along with any of the first years."

Morgan walked past them, as he was pulled in by Katya he smiled, extending his arms into a hug, only to receive a headlock.

"Look! Don't you see how friendly we are with each other!" Katya gave a strained smile as she held Morgan in a headlock, who for his part wrapped his arm around her waist, an action that caused her smile to falter slightly as she squeezed him a bit tighter. "Just… best of friends!" She let him go, letting him collapse of the floor.

"I knew you couldn't resist me my dear!" He turned to Katya, rubbing his neck and throat.

Katya seemed to resist gagging, and looked up to see the trio of older girls stifling their laughter.

"You are all jokes, all you stupid first years, we all know you got in due to your parent's good graces, stupid kids like you should know you place." The three girls began to laugh, turning to leave.

Nya walked up to one. "Mind saying that again? Bitch?"

The girl turned angrily. "What did you-" was all she could get out before Nya smacked her in the face.

The two other girls ran to help their friend, who's eyes turned inflamed as she screamed some words in the ancient language. A foul smell came over the room and sprayed all over Nya, who screamed as the smell hit her nostrils.

"There, now you stink as badly as your attitude." The girl laughed before yelping as she felt her wards dip as Nya threw a knife at her. The two of them began to prepare congruent spells, causing the area around them to heat up. Faris got up, he didn't remember Venka putting on wards, he rushed preparing to defend her, he didn't reach in time as the area erupted in flames, pushing him back and slamming him into a wall.

In the center of the explosion, Nya and Katya stood, against them were the three older girls, the one in the middle visibly agitated. Faris looked around, and sighed in relief as he saw Venka had been saved by Morgan, who had been close enough.

"You bitch! You brought your crystal with you!" The lead girl screamed.

"Well so did you!" Nya retorted. "I at least had the decency to not resort to magic at the beginning."

"Oh, and let you and your meat-headed muscle-bound ways get the better of me? I'd be stupid to let a Wandering Blade lackey fight me."

Nya was enflamed. "Lacky?!" She was about to charge forward as the teacher walked back into the room.

"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!" He screamed.

He listened to the girls shout over each other for a bit before silencing them.

"You know the rules, disputes between students are resolved with either mutual punitive measures, or combat between the students."

"Combat." They said simultaneously.

"Alright, form your groups before the week's end." The teacher turned to the rest of the students. "Get back to your studies!"

Faris shook his head, they really were cuckoo.

As they finished the class, Faris reprised what he remembered about the Mage Duels. One of the school's more interesting rules was the way it settled disputes between students. If the dispute was a cut-and-dry case such as stealing, vandalism, or any other such action that could be immediately proven with one guilty party, the guilty student faced punishment. If both sides were guilty of some infraction, they both faced punitive measures, unless they wished to settle it in a special mage's duel.

Faris walked up to Venka and Morgan, Morgan lacked his normally jovial countenance as he looked at Faris. "That was a rather inelegant affair."

"What was that?" Venka said, picking herself up from the floor.

"I must apologize, I was wondering sooner or later when it would occur." Morgan shook his head, "The pearl class is a little different from the others, once you become a Pearl Initiate, you can technically graduate early into the higher echelons of Mage-hood, once you do, you get a generous monthly stipend depending on your level of skill, some Mages even go on to inherit plots of land and a small unit of troops. You gain this by amassing a certain level of magical power, once you've amassed that power you graduate, there are several ways to do it."

Faris shook his head angrily, "So they were trying to use Venka again!?"

Morgan frowned, "I wouldn't be so mad, they try to use everyone my dear rival. As it is, some try to recruit through duplicity, others recruit through power forceful persuasion." He turned to the three older girls, who were gathering a small group now. "From what I heard from the lovely ladies of this school, those girls were merely copper initiates last year, they seduced and bribed their way into a magic duel with some relatively weak newbies, they had gotten an older student under their foot, and after using him to crush the newbies, they used their bolstered magic to steal his gemstone, when he challenged them for it, they already had someone new to take advantage of. They went after the ones oblivious to this trap, and after the setup, had amassed enough mana through the stones to take the exam and reach the Pearl ranking."

"I thought you couldn't use outside help like a mana stone to take the test?" Venka inquired, brushing the dust off her clothes.

"You can't for the entrance exam, but at the end of the year you take a new exam, and you can use the reserves from the gemstone you've been squirreling magic into, this encourages students to store as much energy as they possibly can into it, so they have a large reserve to take the test and get a good standing, because students can in fact remain in the copper initiate level of true magic capacity all their life, as is the misfortune of those born with low mana."

"So why would they agree to a fight? That'd mean they have to use their reserves." Faris looked at the girls, who now had a group of seven other men and women, all wearing the trademark black and gold garb of the Researchers.

"There's a prize for winning." Morgan added. "The loser must surrender all the energy in their mana stone, and donate 50% of their energy to the winner's stones for the next 2 months. They used this underhanded tactic to store a vast amount of magic, but they were wasteful in the final exam and apparently used more of their reserves than they would like."

"So, they wanted to use me like some kind of energy dispenser?!" Venka asked angrily.

"Worse, they were probably planning on tricking you into a fight and rigging it like they did last year." Bartholomew walked up to them, a large piece of jerky in his hand, and flecks of jerky on his face, he took a large bite before continuing. "My informant tells me that the first student they tricked had a pretty big amount of energy already, and had inherited his stone from a family member who had retired. You all have your stones, right?"

Faris and Morgan took out their stones, along with Bartholomew, Morgan and Bartholomew both had emeralds, while Faris held an aquamarine. They turned to Venka to see her look through her satchel only to see a newly cut hole. She said nothing but simply stood up. Faris ran over to hold her shoulder.

"Venka…" He began, concerned.

"I didn't even get to put any energy in it…" She said, very loudly, turning to smile at him.

This got a laugh out of all members involved. Except for Faris, who walked up to the group of 10.

"Give it back."

"Give what back?" The leader replied, batting her eyelids innocently.

Ignoring her, he turned to Katya and Nya. "How many people can fight?"

"It's a ten on ten, but if you can't get that large a group you have to fight alone."

He nodded turning back to the girls. "Nya, make room, I'm joining your group."

"No thanks, I don't fraternize with rude weaklings." Nya replied.

Venka looked like she was about to say something but Faris merely shrugged. "Fair enough." He turned to the others, "I'm going to grab a bite to eat."

Nya and Katya merely shrugged and rolled their eyes, as far as they were concerned, Faris's talent wasn't nearly enough to make up for his terrible magical energy, and he was in their opinion destined to be stuck in the pearl initiate stage for his four years. They did however turn to Bartholomew, Venka, and Morgan. "We first years need to stick together, join us in defeating them."

Bartholomew chuckled, "You'd have to pay me, and you couldn't afford it."

Morgan smiled. "I would love to help you my dears!"

Venka simply walked off. Nya called back angrily, "What? Is he your lover or something?! He's a useless mage and you know it! Power is everything! You of all people should understand that!"

The first years all flinched as Venka turned. After a few moments she turned around and walked after Faris.

Venka seemed to be irritated, Faris noticed, as they took the rest of the classes. He knew she meant it when she said she wasn't upset over the stealing of her stone, and didn't seem too upset when the school did not reimburse her. She was angry when the school would not investigate whether or not it was stolen by those second years, due to the fact that they were about to have a fight anyway, a loophole in the wording of the rules bunched the infractions together. But even with that Venka wouldn't be acting this moody, in fact, now that he thought about it, she had been acting a little oddly since yesterday. She recently took over laundry duty, which was odd as well. He didn't mind all too much as even in this annoyed mood made it impossible for him to get a moment of peace when they were alone, as she'd point out a little problem here and there for him to fix on his person, and passive-aggressively make quips. Eventually it finally boiled over when they returned to their dorm room.

"Why'd you take that insult!"

"What are you talking about?" He asked in genuine confusion, "What Nya said? I don't care, I'll get the stone back my way."

"But why'd you leave like that? You could have defended yourself at least." Venka sat on her bed in an angry huff.

"There was no need, she's one of those people who either need to: be proven wrong in the most gracious way possible, get it viciously beaten into her, be groveled before until she relents to a compromise, I'm not wasting that much energy on her. Besides, I don't think I care what she thinks about me. I'm surprised you do."

Venka turned red. "Oh so I'm wrong with wanting to help you out!? Well I'm sorry I'm so over emotional!"

"What what?!" Faris got up in a panic. "Venka! What's wrong?!"

"Oh, so you think somethings wrong with me?!"

"Venka…" He began calmly, "I am sorry, I did not mean to offend you, thank you for caring, I should have noticed that, I am stupid for not noticing, how about we have dinner later, but before that we should bathe, you can do so first, so that I don't use up the hot water."

Venka looked a bit calmer but also confused and flustered as she walked into the bathroom. After the whole fiasco dinner went by smoothly, she apologized for her outburst, saying she was feeling cranky for no reason all of a sudden. That Nya had said some more things that had gotten on her nerves and somehow to pushed her past her limit. Faris told her he didn't mind, and was content to leave it at that. That was until after they returned to the dorms and he went to his bed and she to hers.

He had been sleeping until Venka woke him up.

"Faris! Faris!" She hissed, shaking him violently.

He looked at her with a grumpy stare as he got up, shivering slightly due to the cold. "What?" He whispered back. He then noticed she was crying, he looked concerned and angry as he held her shoulders. "Who was it! What happened?! Was it Morgan?! That slippery bastard I'll-"

"I think I'm dying!" Venka blurted out.

Faris turned to her. "Why?"

"I woke up, bleeding!" She walked over to his bed and showed him a stain.

"Yesterday I thought it was just a trick, I didn't want you to know so I took over laundry duty. But it's happened again, and I was feeling so sick this afternoon! Am I dying?!"

Faris looked down at the stain, then back at her a few times before the gears turned and he breathed in deeply, making sure to keep any trace of laughter out of his throat as he told her, with his most serious face.

"Yes, in 80 years."

"Faris!" Venka looked equally angry and scared as she yelled "Be serious! Am I dying!?"

"No, oh my god no, you're just going through puberty… That was a period."

"What?" Venka asked.

Faris's face twisted like he ate an extra sour lemon as he sat Venka down, handed her a couple of blankets and pillows, and began a long, and painful conversation. "Now listen…" He began in his most adult tone.


	28. Chapter 28

Faris stared at his lunch, tomato soup with two hunks of bread. He really wasn't feeling hungry anymore. Venka for her part questioned Faris on everything he knew about human biology and physiology. And on more than one occasion demanded he create a visual representation, which he did through the Fairths, on more than one occasion she berated him for having such "Gross" information at hand, then asked him for more. Eventually after exhausting Faris's information on puberty for girls, she began to try and question what would happen to men, he quickly and forcefully made it clear that the information was on a need to know basis. He then suggested Venka go to a female nurse or female protector of life guide, as they likely had more knowledge of the subject, or perhaps Hanna. Hanna for the most part thankfully did not question Faris's depth of knowledge, which he had prepared to lie was due to lessons on biology from Angela. But she did treat him oddly for the rest of the meeting that morning, and had sent them lunch instead of a small amount of coinage for the week's meals like had been done before. As Faris stared down at the bread he ripped off a chunk and nibbled it, avoiding looking at the soup.

Venka for the most part was oblivious to his discomfort. She was almost never squeamish and found learning more about herself fascinating. This had come to a relief to Faris as he had also forced her to promise in the ancient language to not speak about the ordeal with any of the students. Of course, Venka could have been well aware of Faris's discomfort, and her return to a jovial attitude could be due to finding innocent mirth in his distress, but he'd never know, and she wouldn't let him know if it were the case. Faris turned from his barely touched meal to see Nya and Katya eating alone. It seemed that the three girls had managed to turn the majority of the Pearl Initiates against them, which didn't surprise him at all given the rumors he had already heard.

Nya had been caught beating a student black and blue after he insulted her ferocity, stopping him from fighting back, she had gotten away with it through a formal apology from her older sister which was from what he heard little better than a "If you don't like it get lost" sort of statement. Katya was even worse, she had blinded 3 students after they had been caught gawking at her, then went out of her way to find any of their friends unrelated to the incident and blind them, though those were rumors, but when he saw Katya and Nya push Morgan out the window, he believed there was at least some basis in fact. Morgan for his part survived, he had made the mistake of complementing the two, who had reacted with the open hostility they normally gave him. They would have gone down to finish the job it seemed if they didn't remember that he was their partner and wasting their magic to lower his reserves was a dangerous idea.

The match was in a day, and they had started to look a little desperate, the students they were up against were all well-known and respected in their own right, and the three girls had proven themselves competent mages compared to what they had been last year. In Faris's eyes they were all mediocre. But he was interested in seeing how the other first year Pearls used their magic.

"How'd I pass my test you ask? Well that will cost you?" Bartholomew was eating half a chicken, inhaling the strips of meat at record setting paces.

"I'll give you my lunch. And 20% of my magic reserves for today." Faris replied, picking up the half-eaten piece of bread. Bartholomew drained the soup and eat the bread, holding out the crystal, which when Faris placed his hand, showed the number 100, Faris pushed his energy into it until it reached 80, after which Bartholomew began to speak.

"From what I heard, you had been given diamond ranked tests, which are normally only given to graduates who wish to become teachers or elite journeymen and wish to start the trial. Though you had been given the simplest of the diamond ranked tests, for those who simply had or gained decent levels of magical power sufficient enough to melt the iron dummies."

Faris had heard that term before when Nasuada had confronted the mages. "Diamond?"

"As I'm sure you know, student ranks go as this: copper, bronze, silver, gold, and finally pearl. When a mage graduates as a pearl they automatically gain the rank of ruby, after which they gain the rank of sapphire, then emerald, then diamond, diamonds can compete with each other to gain the title of Paragon, there are only two Paragon's at a time, one is Lord Jaya, the other is Lady Trianna."

Faris nodded, "So what do Pearls normally do, and how did you beat it?"

"We each had a different test, normally pertaining to whatever guild we belong to. I was given a magic stone and a mound of clay, earth, and steel, and asked to create something with them, a skill most aspiring Engineering Mages should have some access too." He smiled as he puffed his chest out. "Automatons are a new creation my Uncle spoke to me about; it was enough to impress the proctor."

Faris nodded. Even if one knows the words to the spell, for something as complicated as that, a construct that ran on magic that listened to commands, a decent level of magical skill would be required.

"Oh, my dear rival, it would be inelegant to not reveal it!" Faris sighed as Morgan looked at him with a cool smile.

"Sure buddy…"

"We are rivals, aren't we? Fighting for the affection of the beautiful rose bud that is Venka."

"Thorns are known to hurt if you keep squeezing hard enough." Venka replied sharply.

"Oh! This rose is as poetic as she is beautiful!" He placed a hand on his forehead, as if swooning. "It's too bad you will not be helping us; I would love to show you my great magic!"

"Keep dreaming!" Venka yelled, grabbing Faris's arm. "Come on! We're leaving!"

"But my answer!" Morgan called out.

"Don't need it!" was her reply.

"It would have been nice to know." Faris stated sheepishly.

As they walked down the hallway Venka in her ire bumped into someone and fell. She looked up to see the hooded covered child of Lord Jaya, her piercing eyes staring down. She was about to say something as the fellow first year raised her hand and Venka fell over.

Faris charged their assailant, the 13 words of death streaming from his mouth rapid time as his dagger nearly flew from his hand as he swiped at her. Her left hand grabbed his wrist her right hand lashed out, hitting him in the gut before whipping back for a stronger hit. He kicked her in the chest to and blocked her hit with his open palm, sliding it out of the way. Her grip on his wrist loosened and he drove his knife onward, only to be blocked by her wards. She punched him, but he sidestepped and began to attack using the shaolin style, tripping her with a few movements before switching to jiu-jitsu, through which he pinned her and held the knife to her throat. All the while their mental battle continued. She fought in an odd way, her mind feeling splintered and fragmented, each mental lash disjointed and off tempo, like a group of disorganized spear men or archers using the pure number of weapons flying at the enemy to find a chink in the armor. Faris struggled, attempting to pin down each of her mental tendrils with his own before choosing to simply encompass and wrap around them, like a vice grip. He held her this way, paying no attention to any physical or mental pain he afflicted upon her until he heard her say in the ancient language: _"She's only asleep"_. He ceased tightening his mental hold, but did not loosen it. "Why did you cast that?!"

The girl for her part removed her face mask, she was beautiful, her face clean and smooth like a sculpture, with the countenance of a model. Faris was too angry at her to really care.

"I wanted to see whether you were worth my time." The girl said, smiling. "From what I've seen, you're passable."

"What?! What does that even mean?!" He demanded. She simply shook her head and snapped her fingers. Faris felt bonds clamp down his arms and legs as he was lifted in the air and pinned into a wall. The pain and shock caused his mental hold on her to loosen, she struck back with even greater ferocity than he had felt before, they stood, eyes locked on each other for minutes on end before Faris finally lost. As her mind surrounded his she did not attempt to even glance at his memories, she simply projected an image of Jahat. Faris could not hide his shock and fear, which elicited perverted excitement out of the girl.

"_My name is Seya."_ She projected before kissing him on the lips and releasing the magic, dropping him. Faris swiped at her, causing her to leap back, much faster than before. He got up quickly, face inflamed.

"What the hell!" He yelled. Wiping his lips, he had tasted the poison. Luckily while he hadn't set wards to protect him from physical attacks, his wards against poisons and venoms were constantly up.

Seya put back on the wrap around her face and pulled back on her hood, now the only thing available were her eyes. He charged at her, attacking with greater ferocity, switching to Muay Thai, she now easily side stepped his attacks, blocking and dodging his most devastating elbow and knee strikes with ease. She would whip her arm around, finding different places to flick him with her finger, her fighting style wasn't at all formal, but Faris could tell she had developed it from years of combat as she seemed to anticipate his reactions to avoid his attack, even with that all she physically overwhelmed him to a point he had not witnessed, not even Bergan had demonstrated this level of speed and power, and he had to admit that he wouldn't be able to control his movements as precisely as she did if he attempted to augment them with magic to the same level. She finally pushed him back, as he hurtled to the opposing wall, he twisted his body to try and soften the blow. Collapsing after he hit the wall, he looked at her. She merely stood there, hands on her hips, her eyes betraying a sadistic grin. He pounded the floor with his left hand and got up, charging at her. She winked at him and yelled out _"Vakna!"_ (awaken)

Venka began to slowly get up, still groggy from the spell, Faris was immediately at her side. Seya took this opportunity to leave.

"Venka! Get up, slowly…"

"What happened?" She muttered, holding her head.

"Lord Jaya's daughter, she cast a sleep spell on you and attacked me." Faris looked at Venka with concern. "Why do you remove your wards? Don't remove them. You regain more magic in an hour than the Ward would drain in a day."

She merely nodded. "What did she do? Are you hurt? Did she steal anything!" She got up quickly, "Did she take your gemstone!?"

Faris shook his head. "She didn't steal anything from me…"

Faris did his best to get the encounter out of his head. Seya had gone easy on him at first, she had been faster and stronger than he was even then, but after she removed her mask, she began to overwhelm him, he hadn't felt any change in her physical state or any rush of magic, so there wasn't anything tied to the clothe that sealed up her magic. What scared him was her use of wordless magic, that required high levels of concentration, even worse he hadn't felt her mind shift at all to try and cast the spell, he always knew when someone's mind shifted to open up magic, even wordless spells had this trigger. Even he who practiced till the point of splitting headaches to gain the ability to conceal his mind from a search couldn't avoid the tell-tale mental shifts of casting a spell.

"She's really strong, and really dangerous. She could maybe even beat you, especially if you don't ward yourself."

"But the teachers always say to remove the wards before you sleep to avoid exhausting yourself."

"That's only because one can't keep their mind connected to the stone as they sleep, making them more susceptible to attacks that could overwhelm the wards. An Alarm spell is suited then for those sorts of magic users, you are more like an elf or rider, you can and should keep your wards up indefinitely."

Venka nodded, closing her eyes as she began to chant her words of warding out in the ancient language. After about 10 minutes of intensely speaking the words, checking with Faris, and making updates and addendums, Venka's wards finally took effect, her skin took a slightly reddish-gold sheen for a few seconds before turning back to normal.

"Remember, this keeps anything from hurting you physically or through magic. As well as blocks any spells cast with the intent of effecting you negatively or doing something to you that you would not wish for, as well as a whole host of other things. It will even protect you from accidents." Faris's mind wandered to the scene in the story when Roran was accidentally gored by the ox horn, which bypassed Eragon's wards. He had taken his time to think up the perfect defensive spell for Venka, with several different layers of defense, counter spell options, ways to cancel spell piercing and spell turning attempts, and a whole host of other defensive options all the way down to a temporary diamond-like covering to block any impacts that somehow deflected every other spell. He had already tested Venka's ability to transmute, she could turn 100 cubic meters of air into literal iron, she had decided to do that after excitedly being able to turn first a thimble full of earth into water, then being able to turn a cup, of the same dirt into water, then finally being able to fill the bathtub. Faris felt light headed as he remembered how for the first time, Venka was actually using up most of her magical stamina. He nearly cried in relief as he had used up 90% of her total energy to completed the feat meant for gods, and pounded her on the head for even attempting something so stupid. The final touch layer was a last resort, made for stopping a weapon like Angela's sword, or the dragon hunting spears. Faris didn't know if it would work, but he also really didn't want to ever find out. Still, it didn't hurt to try.

The rest of the day went by interestingly. The headmaster announced that three esteemed guests were coming to tour the school, and would view the match tomorrow, due to the rarity and expected skill display of Pearl level Mage duels. Faris, who had by this point had been done with the various female students in this school belittling him in some way shape or form went all out in the physical stamina building session, and in the melee combat session, trouncing both Katya and Nya without mercy or style. Nya had been especially embarrassed over the display, as she had been comfortably ahead of most other students in all the physical activities despite her relatively small frame. Faris had been interested to see that Seya did not attend this class, as well as a majority of students, most of whom devoted time to watch the other students who did in fact partake in the physical activity. To her credit Venka did her best to keep up, and was actually doing quite well, being in the upper half of the 30 or so students out of 500 that actually attempted the classes and gave a damn about physical fitness.

Faris had especially enjoyed when Nya and Katya came to him after class. They were led by Morgan, who hadn't done very badly himself, scoring all around just below Nya, who Faris could admit was a skilled fighter. Faris turned his thoughts back to the task at hand as he looked at Nya. The girl was around 14 or 15, and was very, very, angry over being shown up by a 10-year-old. Faris had his own techniques and ways of keeping fit. While Nya overtook him in in all the exercises that required only strength, he beat her in tests of speed, reaction time, and endurance, and defeated her handily in the melee combat session. He wouldn't lose to anyone who wasn't at least as fast and strong as the power Seya demonstrated. He turned from his thoughts to see them staring at him, Morgan had his usual jovial appearance, which was countered heavily by Nya's sour look. Katya for her part had a semi shocked look, like a deer caught in headlights, Faris hadn't seen that expression change from when he placed it on her face, after flipping her when she had thrown a punch.

"Hey! Pay attention!" His eyes snapped back to Nya, who was beet red.

"Ye-as?" He said, stretching his 'yes' out with his best imitation of a Southern drawl.

She scowled at his obviously mocking tone. "Can you take this seriously! This is difficult for me!"

"Yes, I'm sure, insulting and berating someone while also insinuating that they are partaking in illicit acts with a friend they are dependent on. All the while trying to coerce said friend to join them for the sole purpose of little better than exploitation, which!" He raises his finger, "Cannot, and will not be excused for the sole reason of, 'But everyone does it here!' It must be really difficult for you to find the words to say after you had spent the latter part of this week throwing all those jabs and exhausting your evidentially limited vocabulary and word prose on insults."

Faris's hostile tones caught Nya off guard, she tried to speak but was too flustered to find the words.

"I… but…"

Faris turned around, "I apologize but simply trying to let bygones be bygones isn't so easy, what you said affected me, anything you can say or do can have a massive effect on anyone. Didn't your parents teach you what to do when you've offended someone?"

Venka looked at Faris oddly for a moment before covering her mouth, her eyes were very wide as she looked at the scene.

Nya looked really flustered as she turned to Morgan and Katya for answers or support.

Morgan looked at Faris then back to Nya, "I believe there is no other choice Nya."

"But! He!" Nya began angrily.

"You were berating him constantly Nya." Katya began, "You even told me if he looked at you funny you would beat him black and blue."

Nya's face turned even more red, before she breathed in and out, calming herself ever so slightly before turning to Faris. "I am sorry…" She began, almost robotically as she chewed the words out. "I should not have insulted you as much as I did."

"So, you're saying you should have insulted me unprovoked only a little?" Faris asked incredulously.

"Why are you being so! So!"

"Insufferable? Egotistical? Pig-headed? Righteously obstinate cause you were actually really awful to me?" Faris suggested.

"Shut up!" Nya looked very mad now. "Look I'm sorry, I judged you on your apparent magical ability, and I made the assumption that you were weak because of it, even if your magical stamina is subpar to what I consider to be my standard, you are still a pretty skilled fighter and from what I can tell, an exemplary mental duelist. I implore you and Venka to help me defeat those girls, Morgan and Katya are strong and dependable, but just the three of us will not be able to handle ten pearl initiate mages, especially due to the level of magic power they have over us."

Faris inspected his nail as he leaned against the wall, "And why should we help you?"

Morgan now stepped forward. "On behalf of these two, please accept my apologies Faris. They have both had… difficult upbringings, in fact, all six of us had difficulties. Our tenure as apprentice levelled adherents were not kind, but we all bided our time and learned our own powerful techniques, which allowed us to pass our respective Pearl level exams, even then we would have been content as merely Gold Initiates, but our family…"

"Our families are all major powers and patrons for this institution." Katya continued. "The fact we passed those tests mixed with our bloodlines gave the proctors reason to move us to the Pearl level. But we made it here on our own power, if we had been first year students the year prior, they would have given us the Pearl Initiative."

Nya continued, "When we heard news of two children not even being in the apprentice level, and not even being related to any notable magical family passing the tests marked for Diamonds, you could not imagine the jealousy I felt. Or the pain I went through dealing with my family's ostracization, I was now second best. I was approached by my sister to learn more about you two, and to separate the two of you. I'm certain we all had been given similar tasks."

Faris sighed, "And why should telling me your sad backstory make me feel enamored enough to help you? You've just admitted you tried to manipulate us." He felt his voice rise, actual anger evident. "Did you not think for a second that we are also human? That we may have had things happen to us?!" His mind began to reflect not only on his life as Faris, but also on his upbringing as Damien, his tone changing as it did. "Even if you can say you had it worse, don't discount whatever struggles someone else has faced. Because what to you may have been the slightest of mistakes could be the heaviest of traumas for another." Nya looked down in shame as he tapped his forehead. "The mind is a fickle thing you know, all it takes is a few honeyed words to make someone unsure of themselves fall for a liar's flattery, and all it takes is equally harsh and uncaring words to destroy whatever fragile foundation they began to build up, causing them to lose faith in themselves and everyone else. How do I know you aren't the liar? How can I be sure to trust you, especially after everything you've done?"

Morgan began to speak up, "Faris please, she apologized. We all have our willful moments, we all had to in order to survive until now, I'm not expecting you to forgive her so easily, but please, we can help you recover Venka's gem at the very least."

Faris looked at them for a bit. "This isn't just a matter of trust; I hate your families and by proxy you all." Morgan flinched at his hard words, Faris continued, "I wanted to give you all a chance but you've shown that you're only marginally better than your family in the thirteen."

"Faris you don't mean that…" Venka began.

"And why wouldn't I? They belittled your parents Venka, thrice, then threatened our lives for 'daring' to fight back, why would I trust their…" He turned back to the three, who now stood uncomfortably under his openly hostile gaze. "If you want to help them you can, I won't stop you. But I'm not as kind or as charitable as you are Venka, I couldn't stand to tolerate someone I hated so easily."

Venka's face betrayed her surprise and guilt at Faris's revelation of his understanding of part of her feelings. "Then you should give them a chance, please."

"Venka… I…" Faris sighed, "I can't, not right now."

He turned to leave. He didn't hear Venka's footsteps behind him as he left the training field alone.


	29. Chapter 29

Venka looked at Morgan, Katya, and Nya, who all had faces ranging from somber, to distraught, to curious. "I…" Venka felt unsure of herself without Faris, ever since her parents died, he'd been helping her by merely staying by her side. She wanted to be near him, but couldn't do it now, not now when she knew he knew that she had hated him, and still hated him somewhat. She felt both angry at herself and him. Herself for still having such feelings of anger and resentment, and at him for never confronting her, for accepting all her little shows of affection with the same genuine smile, all the while knowing. She snapped her head out of it. Even if she was in the wrong in that scenario, "That is that and this is this." She muttered as she turned to the three. "I will help you, but I need you to promise me something."

The three looked up at her, hope in their eyes.

"Don't take advantage of me, I've spent the past six years of my life as someone's prize to be won, only finding out barely each time, Faris never looked at me like that, which is why he's so angry that you would ever do that. In fact, I made Faris's life miserable, but he didn't hesitate to help me." She had trouble coming up with the right words, Faris was always so poetic with his speaking pattern. "I'm not like Faris, I show when I'm upset, and vulnerable, even my attempts at deceptions are terrible as I can't hold myself back from blurting out my feelings. But because of that you can be sure that I'm telling the truth." She looked at them hard, looking each of them in the eyes until they broke contact. "Faris is a little different, he doesn't reveal everything he's feeling, or even thinking, someone could have complete control of him and still wouldn't know what was in his innermost core. I'm certain he dislikes you, but he doesn't hate you, I'm sure of it." She smiled now. "But it doesn't matter, he doesn't want to help you, and that's fine."

They looked at her, confused. "But what about you?" Morgan began. "You obviously care right?"

"Of course, I do, and that's why we need to leave him alone, he's stupidly stubborn, and regardless of if he comes around or not to helping us, he's going to come to us, not the other way around. I hate and enjoy that straightforward stubbornness. And besides, he's taught me a lot, I don't need to have him babysit me all the time." Her mind reflected to her destruction of the Iron doll. "We can handle them ourselves."

Morgan smiled confidently, his tone changing to something more natural. "Alright boss, what's the plan?"

"It's… a work in progress." Venka shrugged apologetically.

Faris let his mind wander as he listened to the rhythmic thwacking sounds of his fist hitting the wooden post, tell-tale cracks appeared wherever his fist, elbow, knee, or feet struck now. He had been at this for hours, punching and kicking and striking until he felt his bones almost break, then healing them just enough to continue again. He struck harder and faster and more viciously each time, and when he got exhausted, he'd hunt for food, both draining the remaining life force, then consuming the animal. He wasn't going to return to the castle tonight, and he was too unstable to even care that Venka would be worried. His mind reflected on his fight with Seya, and how she easily handled him. If she had meant to kill them, he and Venka would have…

"Dammit!" He cried out, spooking the owl that had begun to watch him, since he left the scraps, it would flutter after him, collecting the scraps. It peered at him for a bit, but seeing as he hadn't made any moves to reach it, it returned to consuming the scraps of the roasted rabbit he had demolished. Faris placed his hands angrily on the post, gripping hard. No matter how quickly he moved, he couldn't reach that level of speed. Doing so for only 5 seconds with magic nearly killed him from the drain on his stamina. He clenched his arm, which had also been torn to shreds from the short excursion. It had taken so much of his crystal to heal himself that the week of depositing energy had been for naught. He felt frustration and rage at Seya and himself.

"So, you're mad because you projected the fear and hate of being weak and vulnerable to Seya unto the other first year Pearls. And because of that you can't bring yourself to work with them, even when you had originally planned to. And you hate that you're so hypocritical in knowing that Venka feels a similar way about you, the difference being there's a mix of this combination of love and hate, as opposed to your simple distaste. And you're scared of wavering, so it's better in your opinion if they just hate you back."

He turned sharply to see Elva looking at him cynically, she looked like an older teen, though he knew she was likely in her early twenties, likely the "herbs" that Angela prescribed to her own youthful form.

"Why did you come?" He asked, exhausted.

"Well, I came to give you somethings, but I also need to do this." She smacked him hard, Faris's face stung but he smiled.

"I guess I deserve that…"

He flinched when she raised her hands again but looked on in surprise when it turned into a hug. "You aren't as selfish as you are thinking, no matter what anyone does, there will always be a part of them that doubts what they are doing, you don't have to deny your selfish side, but don't you dare equate it as the truth behind your giving nature."

Faris after a moment hugged her back. "Thanks, I actually really needed that." He started laughing, "But it isn't fair, you know exactly what can be said to make me feel comfortable."

"But I don't have to say it, so you at least know I believe it." Elva completed, smiling contently. "You know, when I met you, I hated you."

"yeah I know." Faris replied.

"You were the most annoying thing I ever witnessed; it was like imagining an adult asking questions with childish petulance. Your optimism was disgustingly infectious, both Solembum and Angela enjoyed your company for that reason. I was uncomfortable with someone who didn't seem to fear anything anymore, as opposed to just hiding it, which is why I told you I preferred you more somber, where you had experienced pain, because at that moment you still had that childish resolve, and kept it up."

"But!" Faris about to say before hesitating. Elva gently spoke up.

"So, people are attempting to take advantage of you? And then you remembered that that was my life since after Eragon's blunder. That's kind of you to not complete your outburst for my sake." Elva sighed. "But sheesh, if I found the you who wore his heart on the sleeve annoying, the you who now can't stop being secretive is almost unbearable." She released him from her embrace. "What do you want Faris? Why did you want to learn magic?"

"I…" Faris began, realizing he never really asked himself that.

"Before you do anything rash, I think you should contemplate that for a bit. Also, your parents wrote letters to you, and your father wanted to get some things to you."

She handed him several papers, the vast majority of them were his mother's, signed and dated, she seemed to have written notes for him every single day after she and his father left. He smiled as he looked through them all, they were mostly well-wishes, demands that he eat well, not stay up too late. He blushed a few times at her teasing jabs about how things were going with Venka, asking if she ate well, whether he held the chair and door for her like a gentleman, and whether he had been able to drill in half-decent table manners into her.

"Thank you, so much Elva, I-!" But she had disappeared, Faris resisted the urge to try and search her out with his mind, instead reading the rest of his mother's notes. The moon had risen high by the time he had gotten to his father's single note, he began to read it.

_To Faris._

_Hey son, this is your father, I'm sorry my notes aren't as frequent as your mother's, your old man's handwriting isn't the best, so I'm a slow writer. Hopefully, no, this definitely will find you in good health, because you're my son. I'm proud of you; that someone as special as you had been born as my son still baffles me. Your mother and I have had a long excursion, and we will be returning back to the cottage, we don't expect you back for a few years, as that time will be spent learning all the skills Ilrea has to offer, once we are settled though, we want to receive letters back. Don't leave your mother and I feeling worried okay? And be sure to let us know whenever you have trouble, we'll always be here for you. And remember son, you are a strong boy. And strong men know when to use wrath and authority, and when to use temperance and wisdom._

_With Love,_

_Your Father, Bergan Fadawar Ser_

Faris could barely read the last few words, his vison blurred. He looked to the side to see the Owl that had eaten his scraps, it had hopped over, seemingly hungry for more. Now that he noticed, he saw that it was pretty small, just a bit bigger than his face when it spread its wings. It resembled a barn owl and made several clicking noises as it peered at him with its two large eyes on its heart shaped disk of a face. Another young one who just flew from his nest it seemed, Faris reasoned.

"You look hungry don't you." Faris reached into his pack and pulled out a few strips of emergency jerky, the owl ate it hungrily. "Yeah, you flew the coup too huh? Mom and Dad must be worried sick for you, but they also believed in you, knowing you could fly one day. You just needed a little push." He smiled as he scratched the owl on the forehead, chuckling as it closed its eyes slightly and its facial muscles raised, giving it the impression of a smile. He noticed its dark grey feathers, scattered amongst them were blotches of white, and pale dark yellow, as if it's coat of feathers was a storm with streaks of lightning. As he scratched it absentmindedly, he looked into the large pack Elva left with him, tasting the salty tears on his lips he turned the note.

_P.S. Your faungol had been broken, so I repaired it and decided to send it to you, it should be in the satchel along with several tools that I put together, I may not have a lick of magical talent but I'm definitely a decent blacksmith. I hope you've forgiven Venka, or better yet, forgotten her foolishness. The girl wanted you in her life to help her, we had been good friends with her parents, as worried as we would have been, Angela promised that you would be as safe as possible, so you need not worry. I noticed you liked collecting quartz, so I cut and shined a few and incorporated them into your presents, since you're almost a man I thought they would be appropriate, tools make the man after all! Angela even got me help from an old blacksmith woman so skilled I would have sworn her hammer was guided by divine providence, hopefully your humble father can impress you with these treasures. _

Faris smiled, his father wasn't much for sappiness, and was almost as awkward as he was in displaying genuine close affection. As he picked up his Faungol he slung it to his back, he tied the bag back up and tossed the last bit of jerky to the owl. He decided that he wouldn't stay way tonight, and if Venka would hear him out, they could talk. As he walked back to the city, he heard tell-tale fluttering behind him, he smiled as he turned back, speaking in the ancient language, _"If you wish to come with me, I won't stop you, how would you like the name of Ventus? It means wind in a language from my old home, and was the name for the Storm Spirits an ancient god tasked with guarding his island. It's just a story, but I think such an auspicious name would be appropriate no?"_ He took the barn owl's chirping trills as confirmation. "Ventus it is. You know, that's a pretty simple and clean name."

When they returned to the city Faris took the time to inspect the owl, after a bit of determining, he discovered it was a male, and rather young, just out of the nest it seemed, and it had been starving before he gave it his scraps. He noticed that it had a huge crack in its left flight bone that had healed wrong, messing up its flight, he was surprised it was still alive. After a few moments of gathering himself he healed it's wound with the ancient language, and killed every parasite he detected on its body, disposing of the bodies through extraction and burning. When the owl was sufficiently cleaned and when he somehow managed to convince it to come down, Faris talked the guards into letting him keep it under the promise that the "demon bird" would be kept under intense supervision. They made their way back to the school grounds, where guards harassed him a bit until he showed his pearl initiate crest, they let him inside. Ventus hissed at them as they passed by and settled into Faris's shoulder, hiding and nestling in the crook of his jacket. Faris made it to his room, but paused at the door, he was a little hesitant in facing Venka, he resolved himself and knocked on the door, announcing his arrival, and entering. He nearly dropped his bags in shock.

"Hey Faris." Venka looked at him, she looked tired and sweaty, but that wasn't what surprised him, she was in a change of clothes, her old clothes were in tattered ruins, burned, sliced apart, waterlogged. But even more surprising were the three surprise guests.

"Hey…" Nya began sheepishly before Faris raised his hand in silence, bringing the other to pinch the bridge of his nose as he closed his eyes in disbelief. He did his best to hold his temper in as he noticed she and Morgan had been stuffing their faces with his emergency jerky he left in a bowl enchanted to keep them fresh.

"You have really great drawings!" Katya called out, ruffling through Faris's pile of sketches, and through his separate pile of Fairths. Faris gently placed Ventus down, removing his jacket so that the little guy could get some rest, Ventus looked at the group alertly until Faris assured it that the guests would not harm him and that he could sleep peacefully. He took a light blanket and folded it over itself and covered the bird, casting a spell to block any sound that came from outside a certain threshold. He gently removed his hands and turned around to see everyone looking at him. Morgan had an odd smile on his face.

"what?!" He hissed out.

"It's just… I'm surprised you'd be so gentle with it; most people view owls as birds of omen, especially that one." Morgan smiled, "Sorry, just a slip of thought." Faris absentmindedly nodded at his words as he turned to face Venka.

"How are you feeling?" Venka asked with a bit of concern.

"I'm good, and I'm sorry Venka." Faris replied with a smile, "I let my fear get the better of me." He turned to the three, "I still don't like you guys that much, but I don't hate you like I said I do, I let my anger over an encounter with someone else affect me, and I took my anger against them and the Thirteen council members out on you."

He stopped Nya's smile with a raised finger. "That though doesn't change a majority of the points I raised before."

Nya's smile was tempered, and after a tap from Morgan, she stood up. "I'm Sorry! I'm sorry, I feared… you know what damnit, that's unimportant, what is important is I offended you, several times." She surprised Faris when she kneeled before him. And Faris's face widened as the other two did so. "Please lead us into victory."

Faris unstrapped his faungol and smiled at them, after tuning it for a bit he began strumming the chorus for Nirvana's _Smells Like Teen Spirit_. "Okay then, so tell me the plan you had come up with…"


	30. Chapter 30

Katya couldn't help but awkwardly laugh at Faris's face as he listened to Venka and Nya relay the "brilliant" strategy they came up with. After they finished, they looked at him with grand expressions, to which he replied with after a long sigh.

"So… you are saying that the plan you came up with. The brilliant full proof plan, is to hit them, really, really, really hard, together." His expression grew wider as they nodded excitedly. "That's fucking brilliant, I love it, best plan ever, ten-out-of-ten brilliance, the gods themselves weep in joy and pride that their creation could ever come up with such an intricate plan."

"Really?!" Nya began excitedly.

"No!" Faris yelled indignantly. "Are you insane?! You just told me that your packs had been stolen, you are missing your magic stones, and If I'm correct, each of you three had some pretty decent equipment and had a large store of magic available through those stones. I never felt how much was put in, but given that they were inherited heirlooms and likely stuffed to the brim with magic..." He glances up as he thinks, "They'd have to be if a year's worth of magic isn't worth your time. But anyways if their stuffed to the brim with that much magic even Venka would have some trouble, as I'm sure they would go after her first, putting effort into draining her wards first before the rest of you can do anything, such a straight forward battle would be stupid."

Nya pouted dejectedly, and Venka patted her on the side. "Don't worry big sis, he'll come around to your genius eventually."

"Goddammit when'd you two become best friends?!" Faris asked incredulously.

"Girlish intuition. We've determined we aren't rivals in any way, so we can be friends." Katya replied with a wink, much to Faris's chagrin.

"I for one think it is beautiful that their lovely hearts opened enough to accept each other's friendship." Morgan began with a smile. "It shows just how genuine their lovely hearts truly are."

Faris rolled his eyes. "Alright, so, before we get too off topic, what were your tests, and how did you pass them? I'll reveal mine and Venka's as well, but I think you already saw the results yourselves."

Nya was the first to speak, raising her left hand she grasped her bow. "The wandering blade developed a magic piercing technique, it's not full proof but it allows someone to bypass someone else's wards even if they have less mana. I demonstrated that I could hit rapidly moving targets enchanted with the ability to shift the air around them and with a pretty strong barrier blocking projectiles. It is similar to the rider swords but the magic is not inherit in the tools, only a legendary blacksmith could do that, and neither the Commerce and Engineering Guild or the Researchers of Arcane Mysteries can even attempt to replicate blades of Elvish quality yet, but they have slowly begun to try and catch up to dwarven make, but even with that, the dwarves continue to progress."

"I demonstrated the ability to heal severe injuries such as organ rupturing and internal bleeding." Katya said, smiling a bit. "I also demonstrated the ability to create a barrier that only blocked as much as it needed to, which wasted less energy allowed me to pour more back into strengthening that barrier. I also demonstrated an innate understanding of the nature of water, and was able to invoke it's true essence." Faris's mind went back to Eragon's utilization of the skill, even a few seconds of such a task would be beyond Faris's magical reserves, and Eragon had been alarmed with how much energy it took.

"It was a pretty stormy day." Morgan admitted. "I demonstrated understanding of the weather patterns, and my magic was strong enough to hasten the lightning downwards unto the test dummies, which for me were solid marble." He also shrugged. "I also had a habit for collecting static electricity" He showed his gloved hand, which had a lightly glowing yellow calcite in the shape of a tiny ice berg, and the other side, which had a citrine calcite in the shape of a clean-cut round diamond. "I have a spell that dries the air around me, which makes it easier for my clothing to build up static, another spell absorbs the trace static into the crystal, which was enchanted to collect it. I collect it constantly, my ability then to truly shoot lightning is a magic bolstered connection with this built up static electricity.

Faris nodded, they were all amazingly skilled compared to what he remembered about the original members of Du Vrangr Gata, and they had collected a lot of energy over the years with their gemstones, even if they utilized it in order to fuel those spells, it still required a good grasp of the vocabulary of the ancient language, and an in depth understanding of what they needed to do. After testing their physical and mental abilities he discovered that they were all relatively well-rounded individuals. The beginnings of a plan began to formulate in his mind as he rounded them up.

Bergan, member of the council of thirteen, not Faris's father by the same name, looked at his compatriots with ire and exhaustion. They had conspired to find ways to manipulate Faris and Venka in undetectable ways, but Trianna had been thorough in her coverage, no moment could be exploited, they had even planned to harass him when they discovered that he had left the protection of the school and city and had spent time in the forest, but when they spotted the witch-child Elva, they knew Angela was near, as powerful as they all were, a combination of Elva and Angela would be too much for them. Their deliberations had exhausted Bergan, who had struggled not to strangle Rakus every time he pressed Bergan to release any information he may have had on the children's vulnerabilities, both physical and mental.

"I think I already told you that I would have no part in their being manipulated my fellow council members, as it is, I think the important thing is to prepare for Vanir, he will be with us today with his two guests."

"But that is why it is important to entreaty those children, they would be of great interest to Vanir and the elven kingdom as a whole, it would do for us to have such gifted persons in our power."

"They are not your play things!" Bergan yelled, slamming his fist.

"Calm down Bergan." Lord Jaya rumbled; eyes closed in deep thought. "Do not let yourself be distracted by such emotions, we must do everything to secure humans as a race worthy of the same prestige and respect afforded to Elves and Dwarves, and you know as well as I do that the fastest way to achieve that is through a demonstration of great military and magical might and the showing of a stable and united land."

Bergan scowled and looked away, but did not refute Jaya's words.

Lord Jaya continued, turning to look at each member. "I have to admit we have been beaten, with those children under Trianna and Nasuada's protection, and with the fact that 5 of you have already made it clear you would rather give the children freedom, we do better to bring them into our good graces."

Rakus winced when he heard that. "About that though, it seems they will be partaking in a duel."

"Oh?" Jaya stated, interested. "What happened?"

Cecilia spoke, "It seems my little sister, along with Sona's daughter and Rakus's grandson had gotten into an altercation with some older pearl students, and took them up on a duel that shall take place later today. Faris and Venka had agreed last minute to ally with them. This has peaked the attention of many students, mostly due to Venka's addition."

"That's because all of you fools decided to spread the rumor that Faris didn't in fact break the statue, and that it was the reaction from Venka's display of magic that weakened the foundations. True he used a bit of the residuals, but he would have been able to destroy the statue with or without that and you know it." Bergan growled angrily. "You tried to get them to resent each other through the disparity of treatment!"

Lord Jaya looked at Bergan until the latter looked away, he turned to the group. "Alright, but why did you wince Rakus? What is the issue?"

"The issue… my lord is that before they had joined Venka and Faris had gone to one of our mediators to report that the girls had stolen Venka's magic stone. The investigators stated that due to the duel's proximity, they could not confiscate the stones due to the chance it would give an unfair disadvantage to those second-years."

"But there is no provision like that in the rules!" Bergan began.

"No, there isn't but it is precedented, a two years ago a student argued that the altercation led to a stone's stealing, which meant both parties were at fault, and thus either punitive measures or combat be taken. Very few students ever accept the punitive measures so the mediator simply stated-"

"You mean he openly lied to them?" Lord Jaya spoke. Rakus winced at his tone. "I must think on this, everyone is dismissed."

As the members filed out Lord Jaya remained sitting before, he turned to his side once they all left. "Enter"

Walking in to the room was his daughter, removing her hood and scarf-like wrapping she kneeled before him.

"Father…" She said, smiling.

Lord Jaya smirked at her expression. "I take it you met young Faris my daughter, what was your opinion of he and Venka."

"The girl was nothing to write home about, her magic is indeed stupendous, but she had no sense of danger, if I had cast a spell of death, she would be done for, by now and from my observations Faris had convinced her to place several high level wards on herself, I myself am impressed with the level of detail they went into, I don't imagine any normal spell casters piercing through every layer, and even then only a special mage or weapon could bypass it, in that regard she's competent enough, in a few years she could likely take the continent."

"That was within my expectations," Lord Jaya mused. "And what about the boy?"

"He tasted delicious, he prefers mint and honey tea it seems." Seya smiled as she stated that.

"You and your dangerous habits." Lord Jaya murmured, clutching his head in annoyance. "I hope you didn't try to kill him."

"I was actually surprised, a combination of Jade Root and Seithr Oil normally bypasses any magical wards, he had no wards against physical attacks and magic he could block or dodge, which is likely by choice given how thorough his magical blockings were." She smiled, "I fought him mentally, there are few like him father, he faced me with ferocity, fighting physically and mentally, I actually had to cease holding back to defeat him."

The older man shifted in surprise over her revelation. His brow furrowed in thought. "Are you sure you aren't overestimating him?"

Seya smiled wider, "Father, I promise you that he is a special talent. In fact, he has an interesting way of fighting, every time he strikes physically a mental attack is sure to follow and he changes his tempo frequently to throw one off guard. And he had several distinct fighting styles, each with their own purpose. He is no master at any of these, but has such advanced competency in so many different forms that one could call that a mastery on its own, in one year I would even believe that is he had a magical power closer to Celica's he would be eligible for a seat in this council."

"By that logic my darling, don't you deserve a seat?" Celica had the second lowest magical power amongst the council, which was still higher than most diamond ranked mages, in fact, each member had power enough to impress most elves, though even then impressing an elf did not mean that they had surpassed them, or even rose to being their equals, but that was where the stones came in. For Faris to be evaluated so highly by his daughter, Lord Jaya reconsidered how he had been approaching them.

"True, I may very well be on the level of your council, father," Seya said, licking her lips as she remembered her recent fight. "But I'm a special case, that would be an unfair comparison."

Jaya leaned his head on his fist. "Do you know who denied them the right to investigation?"

"I believe it was a fourth year Gold Initiate by the name of Surmon, under you orders by proxy of the Researchers of Arcane Mysteries to try and do anything to wear down the children emotionally when it could be found."

"Hmmm. Relay orders to cease and desist those orders, from now on the children are to be treated like they are normal Pearl Initiate students. And give Surmon orders of promotion, he is to be 'officially' announced the rank of Blue Topaz and given orders to travel to Surda to aid them in the campaign."

"What should be done 'unofficially' father?" Seya asked, stifling an excited yet vicious smile.

"He… got into an accident, it seems that some travelling rogues aided by a rogue magician found him and robbed him before he could retaliate, with his crystal gone his meager power wasn't enough to stop them."

"Oh, father you are just awful!" Seya said, laughing. "He was just following orders."

"If you wish I can spare him my daughter, his family did make a sizeable contribution to the Researchers of Arcane Mysteries." Jaya stated with a smirk. "I don't want my daughter thinking little of me now."

"No father, I'd never think little of you. Besides," She grinned, "my favorite part is watching the hope die."

Lord Jaya laughed at his daughter's flippant way of stating such cruelty. Whoever Faris was really, to impress someone like his daughter took something. Dismissing her to her tasks he retreated to his thoughts as he contemplated how best to meet Vanir and the two elven children.


	31. Chapter 31

Faris forced the excited group to rest, then he went over the plan before he too sat down to rest. He awoke to the calls of Ventus, who's calls resembled a mix of chirping and purring. He smiled, reaching over under his bed to find his extra-emergency jerky. He smiled as the owl gulped down the food. Reaching into his pocket, he picked up a tiny quartz stone attached to a thin leather necklace. He had enchanted the stone to bolster the energy of the wearer, it would also heal them if they were injured and sustain them. If the wearer's life was in danger it would utilize various means to stop the assailant, including absorbing energy from them and utilizing some of it to push the assailant back, this kind of stone and the enchantment was useless against a magic user, but against a simple animal or a weapon it would be godsend. He stored a little energy in it, and cast one more spell so that it would slowly gain energy over time by gathering a bit of energy from all the living things in the area, not enough to be detectable, but due to the sheer number of living beings around it would gradually amass a respectable amount within the month.

Stepping out of the dormitories he released his new friend out, bidding that he avoids the humans and instead leave the city and hunt out in the forest. The owl let out a purring trill and nuzzled him before it spread its healthy wings and flew out. Faris was surprised by the speed it let out, he knew some barn owls were active both during the day and night depending, but he never remembered them moving so quickly, "then again this isn't earth, so that technically won't be the type of barn owl I know" he said to himself before turning back to his dorm to collect his allies for today's events.

Deep in the forest Vanir leaped across the vast stretches of forest, he had been pleased to find that many mages in Ilrea had devoted some time to help cultivate the forests near the city, if only to help slow down the effects of cutting them down for timber. He had met Mortimer, the head of the so-called Commerce and Engineering Guild, and while the human was extremely greedy and all too slovenly for his taste, he could respect his ability to curb his almost insatiable greed with a level of rationality and a respectable love for his fellow men and women and their comfort, of course, as he noticed with all humans, they could be frightfully hypocritical, willing to sacrifice large swaths or individuals for the soul purpose of saving other large swaths and individuals. Even then the revelations of the best and worst of the human race kept him going as the Ambassador. He turned to look at his charges, children who hadn't changed since the news of their parent's deaths in Urûbaen all those years ago.

Alanna and her twin Dusan looked as elegant and beautiful as they had been when they had first met Eragon, almost as if they hadn't aged a bit. A thought that wasn't far from the truth. Vanir reflected back on his memories of the time after the war.

_The elves after their ceremony for their late Queen took stock of the rest of their dead. The death of any elf was painful, but the only deaths capable of being close to matching the loss of their queen was the death of the children's parents. To the elves, having a child was the ultimate sign of love between mates, due to just how long their lives were, most relationships came and went with the seasons, and a family was loath to bear. Hay'thell and Marionne were two of the oldest couples in Elven history, being married since before humans were admitted into the fold of riders. They had one son before, a boy blessed enough to become a rider. They were on the way to having a second when news struck that their first had been slain by Morzan, the tragedy of an elf so young passing caused enough stress that Marionne miscarried despite the elven healer's best attempts. She barely recovered, and working with her husband had rekindled enough hope to bear a child, when the news had hit that they were twins, it had been as if their first and second child had been brought back. The two raised their children with love, and their birth was celebrated both due to the new life brought into the world and the circumstances behind it. When the war came, in full despite the counsel of the Elves, Hay'thell and Marionne joined in combat, leading the Elven Campaign at Queen Islanzadí's sides as two of her finest mages. They reasoned that they had to protect this world for the children, promising that they would come back to see their kids when it was all over. They had been the first to charge at Lord Barst when the Queen was slain. When the children were told the news they in their tragedy cast a spell upon themselves, stopping their time, for they were promised in the ancient language. For nearly 5 years the children lived in this almost suspended animation, doing little more than stare at the door, waiting for their parent's return. A combined effort of the Eldunari under Eragon's care and a few spirits thankful to the elves for the efforts in the destruction of several new shades that had outcropped in the end of the war created a spell like no other, capable of tearing the veil between life and death. Despite their best efforts the spell went awry and failed, or so they thought, 10 more years after the spell went off, there was a great celebration as Hay'thell and Marionne returned to the living for their short repose before entering the veil once again, the children, given time to truly morn finally resolved themselves, wishing to experience the world their parents left before them. There had been great debate over whether the children should be exposed to the world outside. And after much deliberation they decided to allow the children to stay in the outside world for the span of half a year at Ilrea, the capital of the human Broddring Kingdom. The children were curios, this was the city their parents had died in after all, it was the marker of spilled blood of the elves, both fresh and new, and its foundations built upon the sacrifice of so many good people of all the races to end the reign of a tyrannical overlord._

Alanna and Dusan had determined expressions and they moved behind Vanir. In order to ensure their safety a dummy carriage filled with Elven Warriors proceeded through the country south towards Ilrea. While they would proceed through the spine, under escort of some Urgal warriors until they were close enough to reach the area on foot. The trip had taken careful planning and was a monthlong endeavor, but the visit was announced two weeks after in order to detract from enemies of the nations like the Scarlett hand. Vanir had safely taken his charges to the foot of Ilrea, they headed towards the Northern Gate, dubbed the name Islanzadí after their late queen and as a testament to the connection humans made with the elves.

"The opposing southern gate was named Ajihad, in honor of the human queen Nasuada's father." Vanir stated, anticipating Dusan's question. "It represents the place of his birth, Surda, which is south of here, just as the gate named after our late queen points north. The western gate follows that trend, and is thus named Hrothgar, the old ruler of the dwarves. And the East Gate is named Eragon, both as an homage to the first rider, and to the hero who dealt the final strike against the usurper and oath-breaker, as he lived in Carvahall, which is to our east."

Dusan nodded excitedly, he and his sister had looked forward to the outside world. The Urgals had been somewhat frightening at first, but their simple lifestyles and honest approach to life allowed them to make fast friends, especially with a young Urgal by the name of Gork, Gork had been a nice fellow to hang around, and he had so many stories, not just of Urgal legend, but of stories told to him by a friend he knew a few years ago, a human one even! He and his sister would love to meet anyone, especially a fellow child full of such wonderous stories.

Alanna for her part was still somewhat grieving over her parent's loss. She agreed to go to enjoy the world like her brother wished, but she also came to it because her parents' fervor in wishing to help right the wrongs of the world had lit a fire in her. Many of the elves expressed regret that they had merely hidden instead of fighting back harder to destroy Galbatorix, and many had feared that he had grown too powerful in their absence and abdication from the rest of Alagaesia, this new era would bring forth change and a greater interaction with humans, this was slow going as only a few elves, namely the young ones would bother to try and explore, and even then they had little luck the first few years. Many humans still feared elves, Alanna wanted to help dash away that fear with the presence of her brother and her, all in the hopes of achieving their parents' vision.

As the trio continued their jaunt into the land surrounding Ilrea Alanna spotted an owl with a coat of storm resting on a perch, the animal turned its heart shape face to her, revealing large brown moist eyes. Vanir and Dusan paused to observe the creature. After a few more moments the owl ticked its head and flew off, likely in the direction of some unfortunate prey.

Vanir looked on before speaking. "That was an owl, the type was a northern variety, a very young one at that, I'm very surprised that it's survived and is of such good health, these forests are full of predators who would have attacked it as it slept."

Alanna watched the area it flew away from, entranced by its beautiful storm like feathers. "Perhaps it is under the protection of the forest."

Vanir shook his head, "unlike our forest and the tree Minerva that acts as its guardian, most forests in the human lands have no such great protector."

Dusan then spoke up, "Perhaps a human?"

"Humans have been known to sometimes tame hawks, but that is only their nobility who normally practice such a sport, and from what I understand, many of the masses fear owls as a demonic bird due to its ability to turn its head." Vanir chuckled as he added, "And I doubt any human would be foolhardy enough to try and tame a Vervadablaka."

Faris sneezed.

"Are you okay?" Faris looked to see Venka had tapped him.

"Oh, I'm fine, someone must be talking about me." He said, smiling.

"What?" Nya asked with a bit of irritation, she was nervous about the fight, even after all the training and the practice she feared the use of their gems against them.

"Oh, it's a term from Japa-" Faris stopped himself. "Erm it's nothing really."

Whether any of them wished to comment they chose not to.

"So? Everyone ready?" Katya tightened her grip, an excited smile on her face.

"My dear, for you I'm always ready." Morgan smiled charmingly and bowed. Venka, Nya, and Katya all rolled their eyes and scoffed, but at this point they had begun to tolerate Morgan's odd habits, despite his language use and outward personality he was quite prudish, a fact Faris found almost comical as it clashed with Morgan's great desire to find himself enraptured in an epic romance.

The group sat in a simple waiting room, banners representing each of the guilds plastered the walls, and a large flag branding the royal regalia sat in the center. They had been taken here by Lord Jaya personally. Faris reflected on their meeting.

_He had opened the door to the tall man, the first thing he noticed were his piercing blue eyes. Lord Jaya raised a hand to stop him from making any sudden movements._

"_I am not here to bring any trouble to you; I am just here to privately apologize for my actions."_

"_Oh, I see, thank you." Faris didn't believe him for a second._

"_I'm aware someone as shrewd as you probably doesn't believe me."_

_No surprises there, Faris thought._

"_I'll tell you that you're half-correct. I find the notion of apologizing… distasteful."_

_Faris looked at the man in surprise, and attempted a quip. "Honesty? That's a huge surprise, I guess broken clock does get the time right twice a day, so a manipulator might be honest once a blue moon."_

_Lord Jaya merely smiled curtly. "I want you to know that the reason I've tolerated your impertinence is due to the fact I have at least a modicum of respect you, and your little girl-friend. As humans both of you are at the forefront of what humans can and can't do magically, the girl capable of power unheard of for any human without the aid of a crystal, and you, capable of such advanced techniques and masterful control despite your age."_

"_Is that why you sent your daughter to kill me?" Faris replied angrily._

"_Oh? If she wanted to kill you, you very well know she would have, besides, I've never heard anyone dying over a kiss."_

_Faris scowled. "So, what do you really want?"_

"_I have some guests from the Elven Kingdom, the ambassador Vanir and two elven nobles, they will be here for a bit and watch your performance."_

"_So, what, you want us to put on a good show for your guests so you can show off?" Faris asked._

"_Well yes, but also after you win, and you better win, I want you and the girl to meet the ambassador."_

_Faris was intrigued, he had wanted to see how Vanir had changed since the end of the war. "And why would I want to do that?" He asked._

"_Because regardless of whether you believe me or not, my heart lies with Alagaesia and its people, I'm willing to sacrifice hundreds if it saves millions, and if I have the idea that maybe friendship between a duo of two young talented magic users and two members of Elven nobility may help make relations between humans and elves stronger, then I damn well will attempt it, so will you help me?"_

_Faris was somewhat impressed with his frankness and use of colorful language. "I thought you would explode the second a swear flew from your mouth. I assumed you would be incapable of such dirty language?"_

"_When in Rome…" Lord Jaya replied absentmindedly._

"_Where did you hear that phrase?" He asked incredulously. Alagaesia wouldn't have an equivalent to Rome, he thought._

"_Oh?" Lord Jaya regarded Faris in an odd light before replying, "My daughter taught me that phrase…"_

"_It sounds interesting." Faris placed his hand on his chin. "Anyways can you take us now?"_

Faris snapped back to the present as a mage walked up to everyone and handed them crystal bracelets. The bracelets showed two bars, one green and one blue.

"The green represents your stamina and general health, if it goes below a certain point it turns yellow, if it goes below another threshold it turns red, if an attack is registered to bypass the threshold and bring you even further below you are automatically forced out of the arena. Remember; you cannot cast any spells or spell combinations that would automatically kill your opponent, you lose if your wards run out or your stamina becomes dangerously low, weapons are allowed, as are crystals, but you will not be reimbursed for how much you spend to win. The blue represents your mana, you will notice that it will be affected somewhat by your green bar, and vice versa, this is of course natural."

The mage continued for a bit before leading them upstairs. As they walked up the stairs to the blinding light of the outside, they saw two giant mirrors hanging from the top of the stadium. One mirror had a live image of them entering the arena floor, the other was showing the three girls and their seven cronies, Faris realized he hadn't ever attempted to learn their identities, he really didn't care.

"Thank you for coming to attend the first mages duel of the year." A mage whose voice was amplified by magic proclaimed, waiting as the crowd cheered politely. "As you know, this arena will be used to host the Great Games in a few more weeks, so you can also think of it as precursor to that thrilling event!"

Faris looked at his team mates, they all had determined looks on their faces. He had drilled into them that magic power wasn't everything, but even then, since they had Venka, there wasn't much to worry about. At least she didn't have too much to worry about.

"Remember." He began calmly, looking at their opponents. "They have more magic than we do, but you're all passable when it comes to mental attacks and leagues above them in the physical game, none of them are Wandering Blade members so they likely wouldn't know how to deal with boosted physical performances, only increase your strength by 15-40%, any more will tear your muscles, and even pushing past 30 will begin to hurt. We want to keep them distracted long enough for Venka to tie a shot or for another member to switch. Goal one: keep the enemies confused and disoriented, Goal two: keep them immobilized and unable to maneuver. Goal three: steal their stones or maneuver Venka into a good shot." He turned to Venka, who grimly nodded. "You're our hammer but you still could get overwhelmed, they have amassed enough magical energy to take down a shade so don't face more than three at a time, your wards will hold up long enough to get in a decent shot at one of them, once that happens fall back and recuperate, remember the breathing techniques, that goes for all of you people."

As they walked towards the opposing group Faris singled out the leader, the first girl to talk to Venka, she had gold highlights and her hair was braided now. Her robe was long and flowing and she held two crystals in her hand, he could tell the first one was Venka's, the second was goldish so it was likely Morgan's.

"Hey Morgan?" He asked. "How do you tell how much magical power is in the stone?"

Morgan replied nonchalantly, "We enchant the stone to show how much power it has, most people do so."

"So, you don't connect your conciousness to it?"

"You can what?" Morgan asked, shocked, "Connect your conciousness to it? I've heard that the elves and riders do so, but most humans can barely reach out and hit the conciousness of other humans, connecting to something is like speaking to it, if we don't know the language it's a lot harder to communicate."

"So…" Faris began smiling, "Let's say for a second, I had an empty stone but you just assumed I forgot to enchant it to show its level of magic, and you happened to not be the most decent at energy sensitivity."

Morgan looked at him for a few seconds then smiled, "I like that look, what are you planning?"

"I need to borrow your glove."

Morgan frowned, "I can't, my grandfather would kill me if I gave it away."

"No no, I have reason to think at least before the battle starts, I can get us a slight advantage…"

The announcer waited until both groups reached about 50 paces from each other. Before calling out.

"This will be an interesting matchup between 10 pearl students and another 5 pearl students! On the 10! We have Mira Notgown, member of the Researchers, as the team leader, she is famous for having never lost a Mage's duel to mages of her same level! With a record of 10 wins and two losses. On the 5! We have Faris Ser! An unprecedented first year! And the youngest mage ever admitted into the academy! Don't let his size or the fact it's his first match fool you! I've got a hunch he's not the team leader for nothing!"

"You've got that freaking right…" Venka muttered. She gripped her item Faris handed to her, it was an oak and iron staff, each end was studded with 5 imbedded small quartz crystals along the cylinder just before the face, she had suggested placing enchantments on each one, which he had been proud of her for thinking to do so, since quartz weren't the most precious of stones she couldn't store all too much energy in it, and the enchantment wasn't eternal, but it would at least last this battle.

Before they began training for real Faris had made the others swear to not reveal Venka's true magical abilities in the ancient language, they did so readily, which had helped him warm up to them a bit more, he had by now gotten used to Venka's power so he had a ting of nostalgic humor watching their reactions. They said all in all from the looks of it Venka could likely have almost as much magical power as those crystals the other team had, but since the team had a numbers advantage, they could likely overwhelm Venka if they weren't careful.

Faris stared down Mira, she looked at him with contempt, obviously underestimating him, he looked at his team mates, determined and full of tension, and looked at Mira's team, they were severely under estimating him and his team. He smiled at Mira, who graced him with a sarcastic grin.

"Begin!"

Mira smirked and lifted her hand to cast a spell, but shrieked in fear as Faris threw his dagger at her, it bounced off her wards and she breathed a sigh of relief. Until the chain connecting to the end of the dagger turned visible, the chain wrapped around Mira and she screamed as she was bound. Faris charged towards her the entire time, getting in a leaping kick to her face, which was blocked by a young man to her right.

"Jaxon Smith, Commerce and Engineer, despite your physical strength you were unable to make it as a Wandering Blade member due to one thing." Faris began as he dodged Jaxon's swipe.

Jaxon for his part screamed out "Jierda!" several times, attempting to break the chains surrounding Mira, the rest of his allies began to pool together their minds to attack Faris, who merely smiled and leaped up through augmented magic. Jaxon flinched and looked up, missing by a beat as Nya kicked him heavily, his ward held but the force was still sufficient enough to knock him off his feet. He swiped at Nia only to feel a sharp pain in his back as he turned to see Katya stab him in the back. The stab was relatively shallow, but the fact it bypassed his wards and was near a vital part of his body activated the failsafe on his wrist, his body was flung forward out of the combat zone. The crown went wild.

"Look Sharp! Venka! You're up!"

The 9 mages left had been flustered by the rapid speed of the events, they shot a massive Fire Ball the size of one of the train cars, Venka brushed past him and screamed out "Deloi Moi!" (earth change). A 30-foot-tall 30-foot-thick pillar of stone and dirt rose from the ground and blocked the fire ball. Morgan ran up the slope created by the pillar as it began to crumble, leaping up as he aimed his gloved hand at the enemy open palm.

"Kveykva Ramr! (strong lightning, well literally "lightning strong", but ramr kveykva is apparently grammatically incorrect, and in my opinion not as cool sounding.) A huge arc of vibrant yellow electricity blasted out, originating from within the crystal. The mages blocked it with their barriers, and two mages were expelled as they couldn't access their stones in time. Mira had managed to break herself out with magic and began screaming at her team to get together. The seven of them regrouped, wary now of Faris's team, who had taken the time to communicate with each other.

_I ended up using most of my energy in that charge to bypass his wards, he had a lot more stones than we anticipated. _Katya kept smiling, but Faris could tell she was in pain, her right hand was dislocated and she had it rest in her pocket to hide that.

_Fall back and use the quartz. Morgan? How's your energy?_

_Fantastic my dear rival, I must admit, I'm pleasantly surprised you siphoned the magic back from the crystal. I don't believe they know yet._

Nya interjected, _Good, let's keep it that way, boss can I pull ahead?_

_Alright, on my mark, we go together, flank their left, I'll go down the center to grab their attention._

_Though I'm surprised, I'd imagine they'd at least put up a bit of a mental fight._

_They are._ Faris responded as he charged forward. _But they're really bad, when you get within 10 paces, target the one with spectacles, he's their head, and around your level in the mental battle department._

Nya merely laughed as she leaped forward, shooting her bow constantly, the Mages flinched each time the bow got close, the arrows were enchanted with light levels of magical piercing, and every time they struggled to close a bypassed layer Faris got closer, finally one mage got tired and concentrated his mind to hold Faris down, Faris felt the drain on his wards as the greater mage struck down. Then smiled as that mage's magic faltered as Nya attacked him mentally.

The other mages struggled to keep their wards up but looked up in a panic as they felt a large amount of heat. A fireball, 5 times the size of the one they conjured up together had been formed above them, they turned to look at Venka, who had a bit of sweat dripping down her face from the concentration.

"Bang!" She yelled as she launched her flaming ball downwards, at the same time she created a barrier surrounding the mages out of solid rock, concentrating the flames and heat into the area. A first light of one mage being expelled, soon two more, followed suit, then another two. The barrier created by Venka couldn't handle the explosion and shattered, as the dust settled two mages were left in front of them, Mira, who was looking angry but determined, and a man in his twenties. He wore the robe of the Researcher's guild and Morgan gasped as the cloak went down.

"That's Namor! He was the top Pearl initiate until Seya and probably Venka!"

Namor turned to look at Mira and they seemed to say somethings before Mira shouted something to Faris's group.

"What?" Faris yelled back.

"My beautiful woman wishes to ask if you are willing to surrender." Namor said, voice amplified by magic. "If you do, we shall end it in a draw."

"How about go shove a stick up your ass." Faris replied.

Namor said nothing, merely throwing a couple of magical stones into the ground. Faris cursed under his breath and charged forward. "Don't let him complete that!"

Morgan shot another huge bolt of lightning and Venka shot down several fire balls, Nya fired a jewel encrusted arrow that gave Faris some nasty vibes. He watched as the flames and lightning seared past him, and saw as the arrow only pierced one stone, which blew up, he leaped to the side to avoid the shrapnel but couldn't dodge everything. Grabbing his dagger, he looked up to face the 6 golems the man summoned.

_Morgan? What are those thing's weaknesses?_ He asked while leaping out of the way of an admittedly fast slam.

_Hit them long enough and they'll eventually break down._ Morgan slammed his spear into a golem, shooting some electricity into the conductive metal, which exploded at the tip, a hole appeared in the golem that slowly refilled as the golem spread its arms to crush him. As it attempted to begin its deadly embrace it was stopped by two light blue disk-shaped barriers that began to form a conical covering over him. Morgan turned in relief to see Katya, who was clutching a stone she stole from one of the mages before they were kicked. The golem struck twice, shattering the barrier, Morgan leaped back and ran up to Katya, who was coughing up blood.

"Are you alright?!" He asked.

"Crystal Backlash! I'll be fine!" She replied. "Come on! Hit him with your full force! I know you're that strong!"

Morgan looked around helplessly. "I don't have the magic power! I can't produce lightning strong enough to overwhelm one of those things!"

Venka smirked. "One storm coming up!" She began to lift her hands, chanting in the ancient language. They had gone over what her limits might entail, this was a last resort plan that could only take affect if she still had at least half her energy."

Nya shot arrow after arrow at the golems, they ignored them, then whenever she shot her gem encrusted arrow enchanted to help her pierce their barriers, they blocked it. She looked at the sky and noticed it darkening as clouds began to gather, she turned to see Venka with her eyes closed, chanting, sweat dripping down her face. The golems noticed two, with 3 of them lumbering over to attack her, the other two trying to block her and Morgan and Katya, she groaned angrily as she rolled under the golem's stomp, sprinting after the three. As she charged forward one of them tripped over a small blue barrier, another was knocked on the ground as a huge charge of lightning blew up its torso, forcing it to slowly rebuild. Venka leaped up in the air, landing on the remaining golem's shoulder, she turned to see the two other golems slowly recovering, but noticed the two golem they had slipped past rumbling towards her, she got an idea.

Faris looked at his team helplessly, he would have helped them, but he was busy facing Namor and Mira in a mental struggle. Namor was nigh his equal, and Mira proved to be a competent mental duelist, the two likely having lots of experience fighting together. His teammates were still young, and mages in general didn't fight with magic and mental-combat at the same time, so they couldn't help. His mind snapped back to the fight at hand as Namor attempted to take advantage of his momentary distraction. Faris pushed back the mental drill as he dodged the punch Namor's golem launched at him.

"You're pretty good!" Namor laughed in exhilaration, Faris couldn't get to him due to the Golems constant attacking, he had poured more magic into the stone for that specific golem, and had been more detailed in its enchantment. It may have taken him months of preparation but to him it was worth it to win back Mira's honor.

Faris rolled his eyes at their melodrama. "Are you sure this is all worth it? You've literally used thrice as much mana as we have!"

"Oh! It's worth it, just seeing the magic that girl displayed, just one week will refuel what we spent on this venture! And we have all your energy for a month! We'll be swimming in it for years!" Mira crowed; victory seemed near to her. Faris scowled. He unsheathed his short sword, it had a furrow right down the middle filled in with a giant quartz cut into a dart like shape, filling in the line through the blade. Faris took out a paper boat, he had already enchanted it and he placed it on the ground. It flew forward at a rather slow pace, when it got close enough to the golem it squished it. Namor smiled, but faltered at Faris's smile. Faris lifted his sword and pointed it at the golem, as he did a huge explosion released at the golem's shoulder, the golem stumbled as it slowly began to reform. In the dust cloud 4 more of the ships launched forward. Namor and Mira in a panic began to knock them down with spells, tearing or pushing down each ship. The dust continued to fill the space and Namor screamed out: "Come out fool!" He launched a large blast of fire forward which fizzled out. Namor grew confused, launching a second one. The dust finally cleared and he saw Faris, he had been burned by the first fire ball somewhat, but it hadn't destroyed all his wards so he was still in the battle.

"Separate Wards…" He muttered lightly, struggling to keep the pain out of his voice.

Mira raised her hand to conjure small flame. She hesitated when Faris wagged his finger, and pointed down. Mira and Namor looked down with wide eyes as they saw they were in a 5 ft by 5 ft circle of the green powder Faris had put on the boat to hit the golem.

"How?" Namor began.

"These kids over there? One can conjure lightning and learned to slowly build up his own over years, another can pierce most normal barriers and will get a normal barrier in no time flat, another can literally make really good barriers and taught her how to pierce barriers, wherever the heck she wants, really quickly, great spatial awareness and all that, and that really beautiful girl over there?" He points at Venka with his burned arm. "She's really fucking strong." He sighed as he straightened his back, the golem had stopped attacking him as green powder had begun to move all over its skin, detecting the powder as a threat the golem attempted to crush it, but one couldn't really crush the purple soldier powder, or any powder for that matter with one's bare fist. Faris laughed for a second, musing the irony of green powder coming from purple soldiers. He looked at Namor, easily able to handle his unfocused and panicked mental attacks. "Well you see, I'm terrible at big magic, absolutely the worst, they've all got me beat on that, but I can cast a lot of little spells at the same time. Some might even say I'm thinking multiple coherent thoughts at the same time, it's like a language really, when you learn a lot as a baby, the rest come easy…"

Namor ordered the golems to ignore everyone else and attack him, the four had been slowed down by the group, now able to slow them down more easily as they no longer were registered as targets. Venka kept her chanting up, the spell was almost done as the storm was nearly at its breaking point, the thunder head had taken an almost black color. Every attempt to cast a spell to scatter the powder was met with Faris increasing the tempo of his mental attacks, distracting Namor from being able to say the words or even access his magic. No mage had ever done that to him, Faris had somehow wormed his way into the back of Namor's mind, blocking his attempt to access magic with…_what the fuck's a saxophone?!_

Faris pointed his hands at the targets. "Brisingr"

Looking back at it, Faris was extremely lucky. Namor's chief golem had reached him, and if not for the fact there was a layer of carbon dioxide, combined with him leaping back, combined with being pulled back magically by Nya, then having the flames partially blocked by Katya, if not for all those things combined, he might have died. He had found a loophole in the rules, as long as a combatant's barrier remains and his stamina and mana aren't zero, they can continue. Faris fought then with two barriers, one normal one that he applied a decent amount of magic into, and one meant to detect anyone entering his bubble within 5 feet and alerting him, it was a simple magic and easily sustainable, even for him, and he kept such alarm type magics on at all times. Others would see it as superfluous and would rather save the minute amount of magic it cost, but to Faris it was a game winning strategy. Namor stood, clothes singed, crystals cracked, breathing hard.

"How! How Dare you! I am Namor!" He raised his hands. "Golems! Destroy them!" His lead golem began to slowly reform, a crack in the gem made the process much more laborious as magical energy leaked out." Faris was drained completely, as was Nya and Katya.

The sky rumbled loudly.

"Ding ding! One storm! Served up hot!" Venka laughed and gasped for air, sitting down. Morgan stood up straight, and stared at the golems.

"Your inelegant machinations dared to harm my friends! I shall show you a beautiful end!" He raised his hands and began to chant, the lightning in the sky began to arc across the clouds in a hypnotic pattern, Faris felt himself entranced by the macabre show put before him. And he wasn't the only one, the entire crowd stared with a mix of awe and terror at Morgan's masterful display of sorcery. Rakus was literally hopping up and down his seat, moving quite energetically for an old man.

"I taught him that!" He said excitedly, his beard bobbing up and down. "I taught him! My god! That girl was able to conjure a storm! After already displaying that level of terraformation! That's more powerful than an elf!" He turned sheepishly to Vanir. "No offence."

Vanir for his part was taken aback by the display of skill, it had been 4 years since he had left Ilrea to travel the rest of the kingdom, he was blown away by how much humans had progressed with their magical abilities, they went in a different direction from the elves, trading the natural for artificial, but they still had amazing results. The two elven children seemed enthralled by the display of skill, and especially by the pageantry of magic shown before them. The humans moved dreadfully slow, but even with that they came up with such creative ideas.

"That boy especially…" Dusan remarked with awe. "His magical abilities are faint, but he used speed and the element of surprise to catch his more powerful opponents off guard, and the way they were delayed in spell usage means that the five had been winning the mental battle."

Alanna hadn't paid too much attention to the battle until the girl with fiery hair began to chant a storm. She had remembered seeing a group of twelve elves gathering together to create a rainstorm to aid the growth of the forest. It had taken them longer, and while the storm they conjured had been wider in its spread, the girl had created a storm vicious enough to generate its own wind. She had been distracted by the boy's explosion, that came out of nowhere, and even now was distracted by something else, she could see the same owl from before, perched by a stand, struggling against the wind. On instinct she got out of her chair and leaped in the stands. People flinched in shock as they saw her and gaped at her angelic beauty. She ignored their stare, reaching for the owl which hissed at her until she calmed it with the ancient language. She got it to perch on her gloved hand as she made her way back to the stands.

Vanir looked incredulous as he asked, "Did that owl follow us?" He noticed the leather necklace with a quartz strap looped around the owl's neck, as he looked at it, he saw scrawled in his people's calligraphy a single word.

VENTUS

He could sense magic coming from the quartz crystal, but observing the enchantment revealed its abilities were around protecting and bolstering the wearer, namely from wild and nonmagical threats.

"I wonder who your keeper is little one." Alanna said, stroking the owl, who in response let out a purr like trill as it cocked its head to let Alanna scratch it more, she giggled in response and continued.

The thirteen council members were too entranced by the events happening below them to notice Alanna's short excursion, and soon Vanir's and Dusan's attention returned to the battle.

Morgan looked at Namor, who struggled to try and attack him, spells glanced off his wards as Faris, Venka, Nya, and Katya pushed back Namor's mental assault, he had since forgone defending himself and threw himself into stopping Morgan's attack, Golems struggling as he accidentally gave incorrect orders due to Faris's interference, his spells faltered as Nya and Katya bashed at him. And Venka fought against Mira, keeping her from interfering with their struggle. As Morgan looked at his team he smiled.

"My friends, thank you for this opportunity." He brought down his hands like a master conductor as a titanic arc of thunder blinded anyone looking for a moment, within the flash of lightning and blast of thunder, all that remained of the golems was ash, their crystals cracked and scattered. Namor raised his hands to cast a retaliatory spell only to be struck by lightning himself as Morgan's hands raised in crescendo, the golems began struggling to reform, their crystals cracked and nearly destroyed, Morgan struck again and again until the smell of copper filled the arena, the final strike hitting Morgan in the palm, he smiled as it was absorbed into his citrine calcite, it more than quadrupled his original amount of electricity he had stored. Namor coughed once before falling unconscious, his body being forced into the waiting room and into the hands of healers. The crowd began to cheer as the skies cleared and Faris's team stood, exhausted but still together.

"Wait!" Mira screamed in anger. "You thought it was over?! I may have exhausted most of my magic, but I still have these!" She pulled out Morgan's and Venka's crystals. The crowd gasped in shock. Mira laughed cruelly. "Surrender now!"

Faris's team looked at each other and started laughing. Despite his proximity alarm alerting his nonstop Faris stood near Morgan, helping keeping him from buckling over. Morgan turned to the rest of his group, "I'm gonna take a rest." He formed a cross with his arms, and the magic picked him up. Mira began yelling into her stolen stones.

"Work darn you! Why isn't this confounded thing working!?"

Faris looked at her. "Because they're cursed" he lied. His team mates stifled giggles, the three girls standing up and approaching Mira ominously. "Don't you know stealing gems is bad luck, it looks like all the Karma's come back to haunt you."

"Stay back! I'm warning you!" Mira screamed fearfully as she tried backing away from the three, stumbling under a mound of earth Venka raised. She screamed as the three girls began wailing on her. Faris winced at their brutality, feeling almost sorry for her, then he remembered all the stories of her many betrayals, and scanned the rest of the arena. He walked over to the center, and sat down, resting as he waited for the girls to finish. As they did, they walked over to him.

"We… we did it!" Venka smiled.

Faris leaped up, fist hurtling towards Venka, she flinched and closed her eyes, after a few seconds she opened them, seeing that Faris had punched past her face, 1 foot behind her a mage materialized, his concentration broken and his cloaking magic dispelled. His dagger fell from his hand as he covered his nose.

"How the hell did you hit me!? How did you know I was here!?" He covered his nose. Blood flowed freely as he tried to get his bearings, as he opened his eyes a second blow struck him in the chin.

Faris didn't speak, instead deigning to message him in the mind.

_Lesson of the day, your wards only defend against attacks, I'm not attacking you, I just happen to be shadowboxing, and you happened to be in the area. As I don't think I'm attacking you, and my open palm isn't considered a weapon in your mind, well, you get the picture. Also, alarm spells are convenient, aren't they? Be sure to word your spells better, what type of idiot only wards against weapons and attacks aimed at them? Haven't you ever heard of area of affect or splash damage?_

He pushed the mage over, then pinned him to the ground. Pushing him with a mental and physical vice grip he yelled. "Surrender!"

The fallen mage nodded desperately, crossing his arms; a blue light flowed around him as he was yanked from Faris's hands.

"The winners of their first match! The first years! With no losses!" The crowds cheered at the display. Faris turned to look at his team mates, exhausted but happy.

Faris lifted his hand up, looked at the crowds, then locked eyes with Alanna.

"Hey! That's my fucking bird!" Faris collapsed.


	32. Chapter 32

Faris looked around the white walls of the medical room he was in. The healers had finished their work and had done a good job, he looked down and saw the locations he had been burned looked good as new. Though closer inspection revealed a distinct lack of body hair. He glanced at the supply closet in the corner of the room, ajar just slightly. He shook his head, lying back down as he thanked whatever higher power looked over him for letting him be reborn in a place with magic. He heard stirring next to him and turned to his left. The next cot over sat Morgan, he was rubbing his eyes as if waking up from a long slumber.

"Oh! You're up I see!" He stretched his limbs and let out a loud yawn. Faris stifled his own as he looked around. "Enjoying the décor?" Morgan added jokingly, "It's like they thought just pure white would be visually stimulating, anyways you're lucky."

"I am?" Faris asked. "How so?"

"The duel had ended, so the feature to quickly get one to the healers deactivated. The elf ambassador personally came down to pick you up and bring you here, people were talking about it." Morgan smiled excitedly, "My Grandfather came in here! He congratulated me! Told me I made him proud. He never, and I mean never, says that normally! Thank you! Even that short training was helpful!"

Faris nodded his head, smiling lightly as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I take it you all received your stones back?"

"Yes, unfortunately the reserves inside them all had been drained dry, which in itself is also an amazing feat given that we had been in a huge disadvantage." Morgan leaned against the wall, twiddling his fingers as he turned to his friend. "Faris? How had you known and anticipated all those things?"

Faris closed his eyes and leaned back.

"When you told me about the second-years, I decided to do a little digging, no one paid attention to me, assuming I was pretty weak, so I was able to catch bits of gossip over the week. They rumored that the previously highest ranked student started a relationship with a second-year. I heard also that those second-years formed relationships with students known for having high levels of magical stamina, then betraying them for top ranking students, If the trend was to follow, then I would have had to suspect Namor, Namor has two lackies worth mentioning, Jaxon, who has a pretty tough body but terrible mental combat abilities, and a boy by the name of Warren, warren is currently an unaffiliated Mage, and his most used magic was invisibility and footstep removal." He smiled as he looked at Morgan wide-eyed.

"How'd you get that information?" He asked, shocked.

"I told Bartholomew I'd give him ¼ of the energy I gathered from winning." Faris winked. "Anyways, once I saw Jaxon, I knew Warren would be there as well, if you remember, we had gotten out Jaxon and one more mage before Venka made it rain with holy fire." His face turned serious as he held up his ten fingers before folding two. "Let's pretend it's Mira, girl one and girl two, Namor, Jaxon, Warren, and lackies one through four, for a total of ten combatants. Those two folded fingers were Jaxon and lacky one." He folded five more fingers. "We only saw five lights representing expelled mages." Morgan widened his eyes as Faris wiggled his three fingers. "I couldn't be sure that the third mage was Warren, but all evidence pointed to that, he likely couldn't safely fight while the golems were there. And if he attacked any of us while our wards were still at max, we could likely have outed him, so he waited until he was sure we were all exhausted."

Morgan breathed out in awe. "So that's why you kept the alarm spell on?!" He shook his head, smiling. "In order to find him if and when he attacked."

"Yes and no, the game rules require you to have a ward on, mana left, and stamina. A ward that simple barely drained me when I was at my weakest, as all it really does is let me know if the air is disturbed by a sufficiently large being in my immediate area. As long as I could keep the mages on the other team from thinking to use on target abilities like commanding the ancient language to set me on fire, I would be okay."

"Actually, I'm curious, how did you keep them from doing that?" Morgan looked at his hand, "Normally wards block it, but I know a spell like that would take a larger chunk of your wards than you'd be comfortable with, in fact because of crystals, the disparity between the weaker and stronger mages has increased dramatically."

"Trade secret sir, and I doubt you'd be able to learn it anytime soon, just imagine that I'd be winning more mental duels if I didn't have to worry about keeping the enemy from thinking to use or accessing magical attacks that would target me on person." Faris replied. "Though, I guess a hint wouldn't hurt. Also, the rest of you can come out now." He glared at the supply closet in the corner of the room. Within seconds the door opened and Venka, Katya, and Nya came tumbling out, all looking as healthy as before the battle even started.

"I'm glad you're awake." Katya began, "The Protectors of Life would have been shamed if a patient of ours didn't recover from simple burns."

"Gee thanks for caring." Faris smiled even as he said that, he was starting to warm up to these goofballs it seemed. "Anyways why'd you guys hide there while I was giving out secrets, you wanted to keep yours under wraps?"

Nya looked down a bit, "Well, I kind of wanted to trade for those odd hand-to-hand combat techniques."

Katya smiled, "Your owl was free of lice and ticks and other parasites from what I saw when you set it down, maybe healing tips for other healing tips?"

Morgan chucked, "I apologize dear rival, when they beseeched me to ask of you how you fought with such elegant mental fortitude, I could not resist their plaintive faces."

"Et tu Venka? Hast thou betrayed me?" Faris asked in mock hurt.

"Well, I kind of want to get back to that Kung Fu and Tai Chi stuff you were teaching me, and when you were assessing everyone's capacity to duel mentally, you were trouncing us. And now you're telling me that it's handicapped?!" Venka shook her head. "That's no fair."

"Well actually I told Morgan it's handicapped, you all decided to listen in, anyways sure, I'll teach you, on two conditions from each of you." Faris turned to each of the three.

"One, I want any guide books or skill and or theory books on each of your respective schools and their techniques."

The three looked at each other then back at Faris, nodding, "It'll take a bit but each of us have a bit of sway in our respective guilds, especially after this battle, and if we say that it's in order to get into your good graces, they would be much more willing to hand out such things." Nya completed, but then hastily shook her head while stuttering out "O-of course! We aren't actually trying to get in your good graces or anything or bribe you! Or take advantage or anything anymore!"

"Nya, it's alright, I'm not even mad. I know what you meant." Faris chuckled before clearing his throat. "Anyway, if we're going to do it, we'll go to the forest outside Ilrea, I sensed I was being scried on last time, but I have ways of stopping that in the forest. I'm sharing these secrets with you, and no one else, so I want you all to promise in the ancient language that unless I give you permission, you cannot share what you've learned with anyone other than yourselves, nor put yourself in a situation that allows over hearing." Faris expected some arguments but looked in surprise as his team mates swore in the ancient language quickly.

"What?" Morgan said as he smiled. "We trust you, and you've proven to be a good deal more honorable that the average person."

"Have you not seen me fight?" Faris asked incredulously.

"Honor in combat is winning in a correct way, I don't remember you surrendering then hitting the opponent when they would otherwise not expect fighting. And besides, that energy was stolen from me in the first place, that's not dishonorable, that's just karmic justice. I quite like that word, karma, where is it from?"

Faris smiled, "I can't answer that, but I can tell you what it means…"

Lord Jay and the rest of the thirteen opened the door to the main patient room to find Faris, Venka, Morgan, Nya, and Katya all in the same odd poses he had observed Faris and Venka take when they had scried on them the first time. He raised his eye brows at the display, and did his best to hold in any humorous thoughts as he turned to face three of his compatriots, Celica looked at the display with confusion, Sona smiled at the entire thing, and Rakus was flabbergasted

"W-w-what is this ridiculous display! Young man, are you trying to lead my grandson into some sort of disgusting ritual?!"

"Grandpa!" Morgan yelled embarrassedly, "It's a training technique to help my balance and stamina!"

"Oh!" Rakus looked down and coughed in his hand a bit. "I see." He turned around. "Carry on then."

"Magister Rakus?" Another council member asked, a Desert Tribe Surdan native with several precisions stone-studded piercings.

"I said carry on then!" Everyone remained silent as Rakus faced away. "I need to gather my thoughts and revise a spell formula I had been working on."

_He's embarrassed_, ran through the thoughts of the council members, who returned to looking at the First-Year Pearls. They had all stood attention, all except for Faris, who was stretching his legs to the side. Many of the thirteen stifled groans. While the first years looked at Faris bug-eyed, they knew he said he hated the thirteen, and they understood that on some level he was being truthful, but to so openly antagonize them? Lord Jaya rolled his eyes at Faris's cool smile, he solemnly walked forward.

"Commendable work out there in the arena young Faris, that goes to all of you, you made the thirteen proud, your family members especially." He turned to Morgan, smiling. "You should have seen it, your grandfather leapt with the excitement of a young child as he witnessed your masterful control of lightning."

Morgan's smile strained as the room erupted into stifled giggles and snorts of laughter held back, like a storm in the bottle waiting to break open the winds of laughter.

"Thank you, Lord Jaya." Faris replied, "May I ask why you wish to speak to me?"

"Of course you may young one, if you remember I had requested that if your team won, I would respectfully ask that you join me in meeting our ambassadors from the elven kingdom, they have even expressed an interest in meeting you, I am sure you must have heard that the lead ambassador personally took you here to be recuperated, and that he was truly impressed with all of the performances, yours especially when he was made aware of your disposition."

Faris smiled. "I remember that, and so may I make two requests?"

Lord Jaya's smiled faltered before he stretched it again, but the first-years flinched when they saw his eyes.

"…Of course, you can, but I ask that they be completed after the meeting, and that you do not delay it much longer, Vanir, like most elves are known for their patience, but we are in soon to be trying times with a war down south, I do not wish to insult our allies."

Faris nodded. "They are simple enough requests sir…"

Lord Jaya walked down the hall, glancing to his right he saw Faris, the boy wore a light smile, almost matching his own. _Did I overestimate him?_ He thought to himself as he observed the boy in the corner of his eye, his dark shoulder length hair bouncing and shining with an uncharacteristically healthy gloss one would expect on a noblewoman. _Those requests he made, they were too simplistic, too… does he not strive to become stronger? His will to live is decent enough but without that overwhelming drive to improve no great talent would ever be useful._ Faris noticed Jaya's gaze and turned up to him quizzically.

"Getting cold feet?"

"No, I am merely wondering what my daughter sees in you." Lord Jaya said.

Faris's dark face colored as he turned forward. Lord Jaya smirked; happy he was able to say something without the boy being able to respond with his trademark retorts.

"Could you tell her that Seithr oil and dark root are not flattering flavors, also can you tell her to at least buy a drink for a poor fella next time, it's unbecoming."

_There it is, humph how does the boy have the time to come up with these? _"Well I guess next time." Lord Jaya muttered.

"What?" Faris asked. He shrugged and faced forward when no reply came for some time.

Venka looked at the two with a mix of apprehension, worry, and a bit of jealousy. _What was he doing with Jaya's daughter?_ She resolved she'd ask him about it later. She glanced at the two women between her. She remembered Celica as the mage who had had the outburst when they first met the thirteen. She knew Celica was Nya's older sister, some of Nya's worse habits were easily traced back to her elder sister it seemed. Sona on the other hand looked like a very calm and collected lady, Venka hazarded a guess that Katya inherited her hot tempered and violent nature from her time with Nya.

"I enjoyed how you gave that girl a thrashing." Sona laughed, "It reminded me of my younger days."

_Then again,_ Venka thought, _apples don't fall far from trees._

"Thank you, Lady Sona,"

"Please, just Sona is fine, I wish to try and reconcile our terrible first meeting. I am also thankful you made friends with my daughter; she spoke of you last night."

Venka smiled politely, then stifled a giggle as she heard Katya voice out an embarrassed protest.

"Hmph, should have done more in my opinion." Celica frowned. "I would have broken that second year's arm for even thinking to touch my crystal."

"Celica…" Sona began, "Do you want me to share all of the trouble you got into with your little sister?"

Nya perked up. "Please do"

Celica stared daggers as Sona, who simply smiled at the younger woman. "The best part," she began, turning to the girls, "Is that it won't get better for her until she becomes an old woman."

"You wouldn't dare…" Celica began menacingly.

"Or what?"

"I'll tell everyone your real age."

Now it was Katya's turn to perk up. "Mom?"

"Don't listen to her honey, she's just being silly." It was now Sona's turn to look at Celica menacingly, who merely replied with a fierce grin.

Before the epic battle could commence, they made it to the end of the long hallway, which opened up to a beautiful garden. Faris could not help must admire the botany, whoever tended the garden was as caring as they were skilled.

"Do you like it? I used to tend to it myself, but I've left it to my daughter." Lord Jaya stated.

_Then again, it could be better._

Lord Jaya was surprised to see that there was no retort. He turned to face his thirteen and the children, "I and the thirteen will leave you to speak with the ambassador, we have already had our meetings with them, and I hope you enjoy the exciting times to come in this school year." As he turned to leave, he looked back at the kids, "Remember, you are representative of the Broddring Kingdom and humans in general the second you walk into that room to speak to them." He looked at Faris as he spoke, "Take care to not offend them."

The children waited until the sound of footsteps faltered before releasing held breaths and tension. They turned to face the simple wooden door at the end of the greenhouse garden. Eventually Venka took the lead, walking up to and opening the door.

The first thing the children noticed was the cool breeze, they were outside now, overlooking the city's heart. The trains moved even now, and the hubbub of the city could be heard even from the height. It was raining lightly, and the clouds covered the moon, but things were still visible due to all the lights littering the city. For their part a soft yellow light illuminated the room with its gentle pulsing glow. Under this light they could see three elves.

Faris could immediately tell it was Vanir from Anya's memories. The other two he assumed were the elven children, though he wondered why they were not older, they looked almost his age, and they had been said to be around 12 in the book, so they should have been in their late 20's, either elves began to age more in-between 30 and 60 or something, or they were different elves, or…

Faris shook his head. He turned to his companions who were staring at the two elven children, he couldn't really blame them. They were beautiful. They had thin angelic faces, perfectly symmetrical features all the way down to a gently tapered chin. Faris wouldn't believe anyone could look like them in real life back on earth without dramatic surgery and a lot of makeup and even then, they'd need digital after-affects. And that didn't even cover the more, supernatural attributes. Their hair was glowing silver, and their skin radiated a light gold sheen underneath their skin. Their eyelashes were long and beautiful, a size and shape any woman would envy, and their irises were a warm iridescent gold with flecks of blue that seemed to swim on the inside of the iris, disappearing under the pupils and popping back, making even looking at their eyes mesmerizing.

_Wait why can I see that close?_ Faris flinched and landed butt first on the floor, he hadn't noticed the elf child run over to him. He looked at the child in wonder and awe, then snapped back as he noticed the owl on her shoulder.

"Hey… I said that was my bird."

Morgan clamped his mouth shut. "Forgive my friend your grace!" He stuttered, looking away. "His brain must have been severely damaged from the fall!" He turned to Faris and whispered. "Don't get us in trouble please…"

"Oh no!" A musical voice that made everyone quiver sounded out. The first-years' heads turned to look at the beautiful elven girl who had spoken. "I am so sorry! I had not meant to startle you or hurt you. The owl must have been trying to get to you during the windstorm earlier today!"

Faris struggled to keep his face straight as he replied, "It is alright, I'm not hurt." Shaking off Morgan's grip they scrambled up, bowing.

Vanir, who had been watching them with solemn eyes smiled. The humans had been enamored by the children's grace, but had ultimately spoken. He was then though surprised when the youngest human, the boy Faris, stepped forward and touched two fingers to his lips.

"_Atra esterni ono thelduin..." (May good fortune rule over you)_

Vanir widened his eyes in surprise, along with the humans. The elven children smiled at the display, and returned the gesture, replying in turn.

"_Atra du evarínya ono varda!" (May the stars watch over you!)_

Vanir, conscious of his accidental slight touched his lips, mouthing the words as well. The children enthusiastic to finally meet a non-elf who could do their greeting fluently.

Faris smiled at their enthusiasm, their happiness was extremely infectious as he finished his greeting.

"_Un atra mor'ranr lifa unin hjarta onr." (And may peace live in your heart)_

Vanir turned to the elven children, who's smiles and laughter to Faris's politeness seemed to open the floodgates as the children all began to converse. The children took the opportunity to satisfy their most pressing questions.

"Your city is so pretty!" The girl began. "What are those metal carriages? How do they move? What's in them?"

"You all fought with such superb movements! Did you learn the true nature of lightning!?" The boy belted out his questions in rapid-fire to Morgan, who was still slack jawed as he stared at the girl before Faris jabbed him in the side and he turned his attention to boy and did his best to give adequate replies.

For every question they answered the elven kids seemed to have five more ready to fly off. Vanir looked on with a bemused but satisfied smile, the children had been somewhat discouraged by the lack of contact with people, the few they attempted to speak to normally remained silent and wary, and they hadn't been able to meet with any human children because of this wariness. After a few more minutes he politely cleared his throat. Everyone jumped to attention.

Faris blushed, he had allowed himself to be swept up by their excitement. He took comfort that he wasn't alone in this as he took stock of his friends' embarrassed looks.

"Sorry Vanir-Elda" The male elf said embarrassedly as he and the girl returned to Vanir's side.

The older elf smiled at the human youths as he spoke. "We were most impressed with your display of skill in combat, especially against opponents who were many more both in raw energy and numbers. Humans continue to surprise me, and I can see that these trials put up pose greater importance than one may give it merit to."

"Thank you for your kind words Vanir-Elda." Faris bowed, the others followed suit.

Vanir nodded. "I was quite surprised you knew the proper elvish greeting, even amongst the nobility and highest echelons in human society, I have yet to see more than a handful be able to speak the ancient language and begin the conversation with such fluidity and accuracy, I would have assumed you were an elf!"

Faris laughed, "You flatter me kind sir, but I'm just a student."

"Yes, you may be, but also much more, I've heard many good things about you, many good things about all of you for that matter." He turned to the elven children, "These two were excited and happy to meet fellow children, so much so that they forgot to introduce themselves."

"Ah!" The girl gasped, blushing slightly she bowed, "My apologies, I was so excited to meet you I forgot! My name is Alanna, this is my twin brother Dusan."

As everyone went around introducing themselves Faris looked on curiously at the two. Those were the names of the elven children Eragon met, unless Alanna and Dusan were the Bob and Max of elven names, these were the same elves. _But why are they still so young?_

Vanir looked out at the city. "Dwarves have finely carved homes and buildings cut expertly from the stone, elven homes are formed from the still living trees, Urgals carve into the sides of the Spine mountain faces, and were able to connect the majority of the various caverns across the spines. Even with all of that… I must say human ingenuity may have matched or even surpassed us all in these fifteen short years. If Galbatorix could be accused for anymore crimes than what he already did, it would perhaps be in stifling your advancement. This city is safe and secure, enough that I could trust my Queen to be safe here, so I can trust my charges here."

"Sir?" Faris asked.

"Yes, as a show of the relationships between the Elves and Humans, two of our people would come to live amongst you, and two of your people would come to live amongst us, already two children should be within the Forest of Du Weldenvarden on the way to Ellesméra."

"That sounds like great news. But I am confused, why are you telling us?"

"After much deliberation the safest location in all of Alagaesia other than Ellesméra would be Ilrea, unfortunately Surda couldn't be considered due to the incursions of the southern lands and people, who had flourished in the time of Galbatorix while fighting against each other, news of his death galvanized them, and they partnered with the remnants of the Priests of Helgrind and the Black Hand, who have dubbed themselves the Scarlett Heart under the lead of a being known as Jahat. Not much is known of this individual, except that they are a powerful mage who seems able to prevent their followers from being capable of revealing their identities in any way."

Faris felt a twinge of apprehension as he remembered Seya revealing Jahat in his mind.

"The dwarves are slow to move, after Orik's choice to allow their race to be amended into the pact of riders he was almost dethroned, but the increase in harvests and decrease in mortality rates of children amongst the kingdom, alongside a slight increase in magically inclined dwarves gave the dwarves enough reason to avoid the impeachment. Even then Orik is on shaky ground and cannot devote too many troops. And he cannot use only his clan as it would be seen as inappropriate."

Faris remembered that Orik has said that the amendment would have cost him his crown, it was though very interesting to consider that the first two new riders were a dwarf and an Urgal.

"In order to show a level of solidarity between humans and elves, it was agreed that such a diplomatic exchange would occur. It was after much argument over who that these two requested that they be chosen. It was a hard choice, but the fervor of their pleas convinced our elders to allow it. They will for the remainder of this year be considered students of the school. While we had asked for a test to be given for fairness sake the council of thirteen governing this school alongside Queen Nasuada and Headmistress Trianna chose to expediate them to the Pearl Ranking."

_Oh well that's nice._ Faris thought dryly.

"We had still been apprehensive over students they could interact with and be near to help them get acclimated to this environment, and so it was suggested that students both powerful and knowledgeable in the ancient language should be the ones to guide them around and help them attend their classes. In that regard they recommended the two of you Faris and Venka."

Vanir looked at both of them for a moment. "You are the closest in ages to Alanna and Dusan, and as you've already demonstrated Faris, knowledgeable in the ancient language and in at least a bit of elven customs, for that reason we ask then that you help them learn more about the human world." He smiled expectantly.

Faris switched to the ancient language as he gave his reply. _"It is quite an honor that you would consider us for this task Vanir-Elda, I do not know if we fully deserve such a responsibility but I promise that Venka and I will do our best to help Alanna and Dusan enjoy their time in our place of learning."_ He turned to the twins. _"It is a pleasure to meet you two."_ All the while his mind was racing, what was the council's endgame? Setting them with the diplomats? He couldn't fathom that it was strictly out of goodwill or the belief that they would become fast friends or anything so sappy. Regardless of his apprehension, the elves likely weren't malicious, and while he remembered that elven bureaucracy was a fickle act, Vanir had demonstrated a respect for humans after meeting Eragon, and despite appearing much more mature in manner of speech and demeanor Vanir didn't strike him as the conniving type.

Alanna smiled, Ventus nuzzled her and she giggled, a noise that made the mere mortals in her presence struggle to keep their knees strong, except for Faris, he was quite jealous. _Traitor!_ He thought as he saw Ventus giving her so much attention.

"Excellent! With that done then I will walk with you to find your room."

"Room?" Faris asked.

"Yes Faris-finiarel! Your room, you see, I heard privy that you and Venka stay in your own room together, and that that is apparently an unusual occurrence as you are unrelated and of different sexes, I asked of the nature of your relationship. Seeing that it is more or less akin to a familial relationship I was then comfortable with having Alanna and Dusan inhabit the same living space, as they also are loathed to be separate, though your room was too small for the four of you."

Faris stared as the elf continued to obliviously continue on about the logistics of the new room. Venka had a weird strained smile as her face grew red, and the other first-years began to stifle giggles. _At least they aren't nervous._ Faris thought soberly.

"Did I say something odd?" Vanir stared at the group wide-eyed.

"Erm, Vanir-Elda" Venka began, "normally going into another's room, even the room of children, while not entirely forbidden, is a little rude, especially given the… items of importance one may have."

"Ah you mean your pink lace undergarments? Our servants transported them safely to the other room. Though they put them in a dresser as opposed to how they were arranged in your room."

_This is fantastic._ Faris held back his laugh as Venka's face twisted a bit more.

"I believe you've embarrassed her Lord Vanir." Katya lightly remarked.

"Oh! I beg your pardon then, some human customs are still unbeknownst to me, even after these fifteen years."

"Do women not care about their privacy in Du Weldenvarden?" Nya asked.

"Well yes they…" Vanir grew silent. "My humblest apologies I had no idea that-!"

"It's alright Vanir-Elda, Venka should have cleaned it up anyway." Faris kept his eyes from Venka, who he could feel glaring at him as he continued to speak. "Thank you for the consideration regardless, I hope I am not feeling too forward when I ask if we may return then to rest?"

"Oh yes of course, I was just about done. Ah! Wait…" He turned to the other first-years. "While they will be staying with Venka and Faris, to the rest of you I also ask if you would be willing to make their times more comfortable. The world would do better with more vinr älfakyn."

They happily swore in the ancient language to help out and support Alanna and Dusan.

_Are you sure you should be making so many oaths in the ancient language? You are bound to them?_ He sent each message individually to each of them, and he got mixed answers.

_Well… they seem harmless, and that boy is so cute!_ Faris smirked at Venka's answer.

_A noble always protects her friends, and I don't trust the pigs in the academy to treat them as kindly as they should._ That was textbook Nya.

_It's a learning experience, I'd love to make more friends, especially with ones as different as elves!_

_Okay then Katya, what about you Morgan, Morgan?! MORGAN!?_

_Oh, what's that? Oh! Sorry, I, her eyes are really golden._

_Oh brother._ Faris shook his head. This was going to be a complicated year.


	33. Chapter 33

Faris and Venka stared stoically at their new bunkmates. Alanna and Dusan looked back, grinning wide-eyed. Their friends had all left for bed, Faris had remembered politely asking the twins to wait in the room when he took everyone to a side room.

_Faris looked at his friends. They all stared back apprehensively, the past few events had made him the unofficial leader so they looked to him whenever a big decision or choice needed to be made. Faris shook his head as he contemplated how fast this week had gone by. "Alright guys I need you to listen up good."_

_Everyone looked at him attentively._

"_These kids, they aren't like us, they're pure, they are the purest people I've met." He shivered, remembering how oblivious they were to any conversations that even remotely turned adult, almost like they weren't aware of words like physical attraction or lust, nor of the various terms and connotations that came with the term. Luckily his friends had been smart enough to shut up about it the first time it was questioned of them by Dusan, they had wanted to answer but looking into his innocent eyes would make even the most hardened criminal question their life choices. Alanna was no better; the girl had no understanding of personal space and would peer over anyone's shoulder to find out what they were doing. In that regard they were kind of like puppies, really beautiful, very precious, everyone's going to die if they get a single scratch, puppies. "So." Faris continued, "On the grounds that they happen to be introduced to the cold hard truths of reality for the less fortunate, we do our best to break it down relatively easy, at least until they have demonstrably proven that they can handle such things."_

_His friends, even calling them that after saying he hated them a few days ago was odd, all nodded._

"_Also, you have my permission to kick the ass of anyone who harasses them."_

"_And you have been introduced to these truths?" Nya asked Faris, she looked over to Venka who was looking down._

"_We've had our fair share of troubles." Faris said. When the others didn't press for elaboration he spoke again. "Elves cherish their children, far more dearly than even the most devout human mother would, if only due to their longevity leading to a lack of such deep lasting relationships. Those two could very well be the only elf children in their nation. If they so much as get hurt…"_

"I enjoy your fairths! What pigments do you use? How did you learn how to make one?! How are you so detailed!?"

Faris's replies were curt but polite; "Thank you, for the first pile mostly reds and yellows, then a bit of black and grey, for the second pile I used all of the colors I could think of, my teacher spoke of elven fairths and their beauty, she said she had observed the elves making some during the war, I've practiced a lot to get the detail down, and I have a pretty decent memory."

He glanced over to Venka, who was showing Alanna how to utilize the various items in her corner of the room, then back at Dusan, who was now busy petting Ventus, who was enjoying the extra attention he had been afforded over the day.

They had spent the majority of the rest of the night showing Dusan and Alanna all over the massive complex of the school, discovering some places for the first time as well, such as the library, second lunch hall, and even a secret recreation area that overlooked most of the campus and featured an abandoned aqueduct, Faris nearly had a heart attack chasing after Alanna, who had decided to use magic to make her boots frictionless so that she could enjoy sliding down the steep shaft. And he nearly died on the spot when they barely noticed that the shaft broke in the middle. Venka for the most part had been apprehensive at first, but enjoyed their fun at Faris's expense.

"Faris-vor? Do you mind if I refer to you as a friend?" Dusan inquired.

Faris smiled "I don't mind, you may." He couldn't help but laugh at Dusan's joyous expression. "I never expected to meet an elf any time soon, so this is really a novel experience."

Dusan grew somber, "most human adults view us with wariness, human children we have tried to speak to viewed us with apprehension and curiosity, only the very youngest treated us with positivity, yet they were the ones kept away from us out of fear of old suspicions and fairy tales, that we had not known of until now." He looks at Faris, smiling again, "All your friends received us with mostly curiosity, but still had that apprehension, when you spoke to us, I could sense their feelings on the manner shift."

Faris looked down self-consciously, "I didn't do much, and I was a little rude, demanding Ventus back."

"No no!" Dusan laughed, "You treated us like human children, we observed how they interact with each other, without need for formality or respect of station, but a different closeness all the same, it's very different from the formalities we were taught to adhere to. It's both disorganized yet appealing." He looked at Ventus again. "You have a Vervadablaka, a tamed one even, it's a bird Vanir told us was rare in the human realm due to the many fears and superstitions that plagued humanity, the fact one is so well taken care of means you don't hold those superstitions, or that you at least don't let them affect you. But I am confused, despite all of that and your polite and jovial tones, unlike your friends who are genuinely excited, which overrode their discomfort meeting us after you broke the tension, you have and continue to hold us in caution and wariness, but not out of fear."

Faris was silent as Dusan regarded him. After a moment he spoke, "It was right when they said elven children have greater wisdom and power than even their greatest of elders."

"Ah, yes, our parents used to say that a lot, it wasn't until recently that we understood them fully." He rubbed Ventus's beak in a light pinching like motion. "One of my teachers used to say all thinking beings had an inner and outer mask, one thought set inward, another set outward, at times one could even delude themselves into believing that the outer mask was the only thing of importance, and that the inner mask had no sway on the way they approached the world. I noticed that on all of our people's, and on humans and dwarves as well, the only times the inner and outer were on the same wavelength were during our short meetings with dragons, who carried everything with the most refreshing of honesty."

"So, are you saying that one of my inner thoughts dislikes you or something?" Faris asked casually.

"No, nothing like that, it feels more like your wariness is out of a desire to hide something, like when I once snuck a drink of faelnirv without my parent's knowing or permission, but different. Not only are you hiding it, it feels as if it is an active form of suppression." Dusan shrugged. "It almost feels like two different egos in one body, but one is both forced away and actively concealing itself."

"That's kind of funny." Faris said.

"How so?" Dusan asked, curious now.

Faris switched to the ancient language. _"Because I'm me, Faris, and no one else._

"Oh! I did not mean to offend you Faris-vor." Dusan said, bowing.

"No, you didn't offend me, I can understand why you might feel the way you do," Faris said. "I've had to pretend and placate for a bit to some people, and I am weak, so where power was not available, ingenuity and trickery were the key."

Dusan nodded his head. "That does indeed make sense. Thank you for this talk, Faris-vor"

"You are welcome."

_Two months ago, lying in the bed in the healer's room, Faris looked stressed and worn out, many would think it was because of the injuries sustained from Anya, but it was an internal struggle. Inside Faris's mind, a battle raged between two opposing forces, these two forces struggled their fierce battle against each other in his mind._

_One side, a dark-skinned child with straight brown hair shoulder-length hair and sky-blue eyes placed in a determined, angry expression, that barely held back the dark rage that burned within. The other side was an older boy, of sixteen years, darker skin, darker hair in a short curl, and eyes as black as coal, an equal mix of fear, sorrow, defiance, and sheer terror shined through as he fought as if his life depended on it, and he was losing._

"_Stop it Faris! Why are you doing this!" The older boy cried in terror, his defenses breaking apart but reforming almost as fast, almost as fast._

"_You know damn well why Damien; this is all your fault! It's your fault, you hesitate, you're cowardly, you make me second guess myself! If we had rushed! We could have saved them!"_

"_I didn't know, we didn't know Faris!" Damien pleaded, thinking back._

_When he had died, when he was reborn as Faris, somewhere, somehow, he created a separation yet connection of identity, whatever the child Faris would have been if not for Damien, he did not know, but he didn't know whether it was truly his soul or an invasion, so he tried to create some sort of preservation. Angela sensed that separation, and her attack directed towards weakening the part considered Damien caused the severe rift between their personalities. Separate but whole. That was why Angela stated he contained the childish ability to learn quickly, not because of Damien, not fully, but because of Faris, Damien would be the reference, Faris would be the actor, and together Faris was strong in mind and will. Damien had strong feelings against bullies, and hadn't felt much for Venka, not like Faris did, for Faris, it was love at first sight, though Damien chocked it up to infatuation, much to Faris's irritation. But with this straining in the relationship between Faris and Venka, Damien took full advantage of it, it had been his influence that got Faris to help the other children, but it was also his influence that kept Faris from offering the same help to Venka. Damien was the one who wanted to prank Venka yes, but it was Faris who finally decided to fight Anya, and it wasn't until their lives were at risk that Damien finally allowed the use of the technique of siphoning life. Damien knew Faris blamed him, Faris felt self-hatred for the events, and Faris placed the blame on his memories of a past life, but not just that, but on the facsimile, the representation, the avatar of those memories, of the set of being that made Damien who he was, and it was that very cowardly, cautious that essence Faris in his rage and self-hate chose to turn on and destroy. And Damien was losing, not because he was a worse mental duelist, they were almost equals in skill, nor was he losing due to Faris having magic, while Damien had none truly that was his, Faris couldn't attack himself, at least not without risking himself. No, Damien was losing because he surrendered. His defenses were due to an ingrained will to live he couldn't suppress._

"_Faris! Think of what you are doing! This won't make Venka happy!"_

"_Venka hates us! But it's because of you! If I get rid of you!"_

_Damien cowered in fear as the last of his defenses were torn away before he could rebuild it. "So, what, if you hide me away? Destroy me? Then what?" His 'eyes' opened in realization as he sensed Faris's thoughts. "So that's it?" He thought bitterly. "Venka hates us, but if you pretend that I'm the part she hates solely, then hide me away, it's okay she hates us, because she really only hates me, and you can't get rid of me, so it's not your fault anymore."_

_Faris's silence was all he needed._

"_Fine, if that is how you feel." A cage of chains began to form around him, and in the real world, Faris visibly flinched as a part of his mind was almost completely severed from the rest of his psyche except for a tiny sliver, even then the strain in keeping this state would be unbearable if not for the partition being willing to stay in his cage. Damien for the most part stared into the bleak void that was the subconscious of Faris, partaking of the world he experienced as if in a lucid dream through a tv set. Occasionally Faris would delve into this part of his mind, into Damien to find something of use, then he'd leave, lock up and hide the key. Faris never fought back, and he wouldn't fight back. He couldn't fight back against his parents, nor against his bullies, after taking martial arts, he finally fought back, but he instead aided a thief with a pretty face, who ended up killing him. To make matters worse, he was responsible for the death of three people, he could not take that responsibility, but even then Faris chose to make him the scapegoat, the Black Hand cultists weren't really killed by Faris, he reasoned, no, it was Damien's doing, despite being a coward. Yet it wasn't Damien whose mind held the impetus for Venka's mind meld, it was Faris. Even then, Damien kept his thoughts hidden, he was already ashamed of any feelings he may have had for others, and Faris would not let him acknowledge them, this respite forced Damien to retreat and be as small as possible, but even someone so used to being downtrodden could not keep silent indefinitely._

"_You know Faris," Damien called out into the void, knowing that no one was listening, "when I died, my regret was that I hadn't left the library so soon, that maybe that one day I would defy those that controlled me, and control myself for a bit. When I came to this world, I thought this was God giving me a second chance, but even then, I was scared I took it away from someone else, so I separated us somewhat. Maybe it was that slight separation that caused Angela to detect, attack us, and cause the rupture that occurred. Maybe I'm the fake, maybe you are, but I'm too tired to fight for freedom anyway, so you might as well enjoy your life Faris, just, let me pretend, please. Even if it is fake and vicarious, let me pretend that I'm part of a free will, and of something… more." This had been his fourth time making this entreaty, the doors never opened, and he never expected them to open, and his melancholic sadness further weakened himself. Faris had turned away from whatever comprised of Damien, and denied his existence, and Damien didn't have the will to forcefully be acknowledged anymore._

Faris looked at Dusan, who was now completely distracted by Ventus, who was doing some tricks, before he whispered to himself, "I'm me, no one else."


	34. Chapter 34

"All right then, let's get this training session on."

His friends all looked at him a little oddly. Faris pegged it for the fact he got them up just before sunrise to do a mix of tai chi and the elven rimgar, Alanna and Dusan commented on how surprised they were at the flexibility of Faris, who had been able to stretch up to the third level, and applauded the efforts of the rest of the training first years, who had been able to reach the basics of the second level. Faris then taught everyone the sun salutation, which the elven children enjoyed thoroughly.

"So, what's with the odd faces?" He asked lightly.

"You just seem a bit grumpy." Morgan offered, smiling. "We hope you didn't force yourself awake for our sakes."

Faris shook his head. "No, that wasn't it, besides, a good bit of exercise will do us good, and help clear all our minds, mine included." He then proceeded to lead them into his daily exercises: push-ups, sit-ups, squats, pull-ups, and a lot of stretching. He was pleased to see Venka for the most part kept up with him, the first-years all were doing their best, but both Morgan and Nya cramped up after the sit-ups, and Katya almost fell doing pull ups. Faris remembered someone letting out a wicked fart, and watching as the area tensed up, before he calmly told everyone to relocate to a different section away from the smell. The twins were extremely competent at each exercise he introduced to them, their daily rimgar exercises, mixed with their enhanced strength as elves allowed them to take to each exercise easily, not even feeling winded after completing 5 times more repetitions than even he had.

After this came the training for mental battles, Faris would pair each person with someone else, in order for them to test their mental fighting abilities with each other. After explaining the purpose to the twins and confirming they already began receiving mental training, he decided he would test them. He knew that humans tended to lose themselves in an elf's mind, so he decided that that it would be safer for a more experienced mental duelist to face them. Faris found interestingly that while the two were excellent mental combatants, they weren't at the life or death levels he had faced before. Though even then while they never bashed through his defenses, he never managed to slip past or spear through theirs. He also gained a lot of insight from how the elves' dueled, unlike humans who normally didn't have the power to spare to risk their wards being used up, elves did not have that in the back of their mind, so their mental battles were more about the waiting game, a weak defense at first was merely a trap to lure one in, before they struck in a constricting grip, like a python around prey. If Faris wasn't already so cautious he would have lost right then and there, even then, he had to admit even if they didn't feel like the life and death level of mental combat he faced before, if push came to shove, he'd likely lose.

"So, which one of you is the better mental duelist?" He asked after breaking contact with Alanna for the umpteenth time.

"I believe my brother is." She replied.

"No, I'm better at setting the mental trap, you have better defenses." Dusan added.

Faris turned to look at his team mates, if he had to rate them on mental defense ability, Nya would be at first place, if Anya was a 100, she would be 65, which was generous considering Namor would be a 72, this was followed by Morgan, who was a respectable 60, Katya was further back at a 40, or a 50 if she merely concentrated on defense, and Venka was a 36. But even then, that much progress in two months was no joke. They had gotten into more duels since their last, and had won each and every one of them. Yet for some strange reason more students tried throwing themselves at his team. They would have back to back matches, as at this point defeating them would be like winning the lottery or finding the golden goose. In order to incorporate it into the training Faris had everyone limit the level of magic they could display, giving them trouble at first, they had nearly lost their second match because of this handicap, which likely got everyone galvanized to challenge them. His team had gotten a great deal of actual combat practice in, and Faris was appalled at the apparent level of Pearl ranked student mages, most of which were below Venka's ability now. But was even more surprised at how some of them compensated, two mages willing to share a mental attack could achieve feats greater than the sums of their parts, it was only barely greater, like if two 15's mixed their efforts, they may be able to achieve the level of a 40, but even then, that was something. But Faris had taught his friends how to not only block mental attacks, but avoid and redirect them, as powerful as a group melding their minds together to attack may be, all it took was a bit of forceful redirection on their weakest link to split them apart. When he had shared the scores with them Nya had inquired on his mental ability.

"Me? I'd say I'm around a 55."

"But you gave me a higher score?" Nya asked confused.

"Nya, have I ever fought in a straight forward way? I attack with physical blades alongside my mental ones, and a distracted duelist's score drops fast." He gets into a martial stance, "A mental duel requires as much preparation as fighting physically, if your opponent is stronger than you, beat out his strength with your tenacity and technique, I am not physically stronger than you, but after a bit I predicted your style and adjusted my own to meet it. I've fought plenty of people mentally, so I've devised the best attack patterns for each type. I'd put mental duelists in a few camps, the first would be the straight forward attack camp, they tend to strike as hard as they can, like a battering ram against castle gates, their defenses are equally straightforward, normally they are single images or thoughts or impressions, it is a very reliable and easy to learn mental ability, and while mastering may take a few years, the masters are very formidable, standing like mountains. To defeat them I employ a bait and switch tactic, while they strike at one section of my defenses I strike where they attacked, because those types tend to have difficulty immediately switching between attack and defense, necessity dictates then that they have to emphasize defense against me, and I take the opportunity to worm in and attack them from the inside." Nya's eyes opened wide. Faris smiled in response. "Yep, that's its biggest weakness, the straightforward types only create one layer of defense, so when it is shattered, they scramble to reform it instinctually instead of trying to push back or counterattack the opponent. But in so wasting the time the opponent wins the fight. That's how I beat you guys, you all utilize a variation of the straightforward type, I don't blame you as it's likely all you've been taught, and for people like Nya and Venka, it matches your personalities so it's natural you would be better at it than the other techniques."

"What's my technique Faris?" Morgan asked, Katya also looked at him quizzically.

"After fighting you guys, I realized that you Morgan, you seem better suited for the bait and switch, defense isn't your highest priority. You'd be better off creating weaker fake defenses to prepare counters. Imagine an army charging into a stone wall only to find that it was made of wet loose dirt, they crash into brambles afterwards, and after that confusion they are caught unawares as spearmen and archers strike at their now defenseless bodies. After this first assault a slightly stronger defense meets the crippled aggressor, cutting down whatever survived the first onslaught, then rinse and repeat if the enemy has time to regroup. You are a fast thinker, I noticed that whenever I made my way past a defense, you'd set another one up, it was weaker of course, but you still set it up, practice the idea of your mind surrounded by multiple walls, each layer slightly thicker than the first. Your goal is to frustrate the enemy."

Morgan smiled and thanked him for the insight, Katya looked at Faris expectantly.

"You have the counter style, your defenses are much better than your offense and your swordsmanship reflects a desire to use the enemy's strength against them, you are better off focusing on defense and deflection, forcing the enemy's mental strikes to stray too far off target, the mind is a fast thing, but focusing another mental attack is slower than hitting one home and retreating. This technique is best against multiple opponents because you can retreat into yourself to avoid the worst of their mental bombardments, and that they can risk accidentally hurting each other if there is a level of distrust, which unfortunately is a very human tendency. I need you to imagine that you are extremely armored, except for a fake weakness, when the enemy strikes, you punch out, not hitting them, but their weapon, as it glances away two more enemies strike at you, and you do the same as before, but this time bouncing the opponent's weapon into his ally, while you block their now weakened strike. Your goal is to lull the enemy into a feeling of victory and arrogance, only to finally strike when your counter leaves them shocked."

They spent the next two hours training, and Faris was thankful and annoyed that there would be no classes today or tomorrow. Faris was elated to see his friends had taken to his advice, to Venka and Nya he merely pointed out the biggest weaknesses of straight forward mentalists, and helped them learn to create secondary stronger defenses in case the first one failed. He also helped them with a technique he dubbed, 'mobile fortress', where instead of a single thought or image as the basis of their mental defense, they would concentrate on an easy to repeat phrase or song, this made their minds more flexible, and while they lost a few more times than before, they could also tell that the technique was many times better than their previous static defenses. Soon they started to give even him a run for his money, but he chalked it up to his exhaustion over the mental duels with Alanna and Dusan, who admitted they were going easy on him at first. Before this revelation he would have put Alanna at an 85, and Dusan at an 84, now he'd have to place Dusan at 120, and Alanna at a whopping 150. Even then Faris barely lost to them, who both were visibly impressed with his mental skills, stating he was severely undercutting his abilities.

"No no, I was only playing defense the entire time." Though he did admit to himself that he would have done better if he hadn't been hampering himself. He pushed that thought away, turning to his friends, who were now switching to the magical drills he had practiced with Bergan, the only difference being instead of fighting to train their stamina, they had to think up ways to solve complex puzzles within the limited frame work he gave them, such as taking a keeping the water in a cup and placing it in a bowl right above, all while facing off against each other martially."

Faris for the most part stuck to teaching each person the style he believed suited them the most. Nya took up Karate, Katya was surprisingly, or more honestly unsurprisingly, into the killing techniques of Muay Thai, and Morgan took up Taekwondo, he seemed to find keeping his hands free of utmost priority and Taekwondo's emphasis on kicks helped him out quite a bit. After spending a few more hours learning the basics of each move Nya joked that together they could finally beat Faris. After spending the next 30 minutes handling them all with ease, Faris allowed them to go and take a break.

"Faris, do you mind sparring with us?" Dusan asked.

Faris took the opportunity to fight against both Dusan and Alanna, Dusan was the better physical fighter, both due to puberty and being a boy, as well as due to his greater interest in physical combat, which he himself admitted. While the three of them were alone Alanna turned to Faris.

"Faris, you are extremely skilled, if not for your age I would have assumed only a master living for years would have this much knowledge and expertise."

Faris thought to the memories of Damien, he had stopped looking into that section of his mind for two months now, and had wanted to keep himself separated from it since the incident with Anya. Before then he had learned and revised all he knew of martial arts, Damien had been no master, but he had obtained access and had borne witness to several masters at work in their various masteries. Reaching Damien's skill level of first-degree black belt wasn't too difficult when he had a young flexible body and the ability to replay any demonstration as if he was watching in high definition.

"Thanks," He replied.

"Faris, I beg your pardon, my words still offend you today, it was not my place to question you on such matters." Dusan began.

"Dusan, it's alright, may we please not broach that topic?"

They sat in silence some more, before Alanna asked about human celebrations. Faris, eager to change the topic spoke of the harvest festival, and of the various religious and cultural festivities that littered the city. He also spoke of the honeyed ice, a delicacy served during the winter were snow and ice was gathered and sweet syrup was added to it to make a cold and refreshing treat. The talk continued until the rest of his friends returned. Training commenced for a short hour before they returned together to have supper and lollygag. It was an uneventful night, and Faris was thankful for it, tomorrow the training would be postponed, Lord Jaya had fulfilled his second promise and Faris was going to collect on it.

"Where are we going?" Venka asked as they walked in the slums of the city streets, towards one of the poorer districts, even then the streets weren't too dirty, but slums were slums and the people had that same look he had noticed when he accidentally got lost in the poorer section of his city: distrust, fear, envy, and an overriding feeling of exhaustion. Even then they had a pride as a people to hold on to. That didn't stop them from looking at the new faces with suspicious looks.

"The real question is why are we in these ridiculous rags?" Nya scowled as she wore one of the grey cloaks Lord Jaya had handed Faris, alongside a map of the city with a marker traced on a part of the slums.

"But you look lovely in anything Nya." Morgan smiled as he stated that, Nya only replied by rolling her eyes, Katya for her part laughed at their display.

Alanna and Dusan had tagged along, they themselves had felt some wariness about Faris, and when they learned he had made some requests in exchange for helping them through drilling Venka, they decided to discover what he wanted.

"Why are you all coming with me again?" Faris asked exasperated.

"Because one child in nondescript grey clothing screams, 'please kidnap me!'" Nya said annoyed. "I honestly wish you just tell us why you are here."

Faris didn't want to, because the reason they were here was because of a certain someone else close to him, even then it was promise that needed to be kept.

Faris led his friends past an alleyway, were two thuggish looking individuals slept. They had been awake and prepared to ambush the children they heard came from the upper districts, they had not been the only ones, 14 other men lay asleep. Faris didn't want any blood on his hands today, and wasn't in the mood to make a scene, so he had acted accordingly.

After passing through an almost maze-like set of twists and turns they ran into a group of small children playing and laughing, both Faris and Venka felt twinges of nostalgia as it reminded them of the children back in their home town. Nya looked away embarrassedly as she saw some of the children were running about in the nude. They seemed to be recreating the battle of Farthen Dûr. With one child wearing a light blue cape and toy horns made out of scrap, another two kids, one wearing a red hat, were fighting with play swords as the kid with the blue cape and a girl with fake elf ears made out of parchment leaped from a stack of boxes and the other child 'stabbed' his sword in-between the gap between the red-hatted boy's hands and torso.

"Augh! You beat me Shadeslayer!" The boy announced to the cheers of the entire group. Faris couldn't hide the cheesy smile that took his face over the cute display. The children began to notice the big kids and ran up to them, asking if they had any food or toys. Nya looked at herself self-consciously but Faris took out a huge bowl from his satchel, full of fried cakes he had been preparing the day prior, that was the extra request he had asked for, cooking supplies, but that was only after Lord Jaya questioned whether he really only wanted the magic books and his second request. The kids opened their eyes in delight as each of them stuffed their faces, then they grabbed the food and began to run back towards their homes, likely to share the spoils with their family. The boy with his red hat was about to run off when Faris called out. "Wait! Are you Dustin?"

The boy turned around cautiously. "What's it to you?"

Faris moved to one knee so he could speak to the boy on eyelevel. The boy looked at him with a mix of fear and defiance. "I need to talk to your mother please, it's very important." The boy's eyes widened as he tried to slip out of Faris's reach. Faris was faster, grabbing his arm lightly but firmly, with dismay he felt the child's bones easily, he was severely malnourished.

"I'm sorry but my ma is sick! Don't come take her away!"

"What do you mean little one?" Venka asked with concern.

"Aren't you the tax collectors!? Here to take mama away! Dad's been gone so we're out of gold to give! Please! Momma would work but she's sick!" He began to cry, the fried cakes almost dropped from his hands. Faris reached to grab them but it was Katya, Nya, and Morgan who reached them first, keeping the balls from hitting the ground with magic. The boy gasped in awe even through his tears.

"Take us to her." Faris began, smiling reassuringly. "We are here to help."

The boy led them further into the slums, until they reached a large set of huts, the second to last on the left was the dirtiest and most unkempt looking on the outside, but on the inside, it looked a decent bit neater. But even then, the floor was dirt except for cobbled stone for the kitchen and a bundle of torn blankets, rags, and pillows in a corner of the room, in that corner, next to a still burning fire lay an extremely sickly woman with dirty blond hair and pale skin. Her eyes were sunken in and her body was covered in sores. Faris turned to his friends and rapidly coached them on the correct phrasing of the ancient language to ward themselves and heal any infection already apparent. Faris immediately recognized it as murk, a disease similar to the chickenpox, only a good deal more painful, like chickenpox it was relatively safe if a child contracted it, but if an adult never got it as a child and received it later, they were guaranteed death without treatment. This was a disease that only really affected the poor, and it had decimated a few villages during the war.

Nya gasped in horror, and Katya held back puke as they saw the sorry sight the woman was in. She was still breathing faintly as she struggled to get up, only to have Dustin rush up to her, and offer her some of the food.

"Dustin!" She turned to look at her son. "Did you steal these!"

"No momma! They gave it to me! To all us kids! It's not poisons! It's really good!"

The woman's eyes were glazed and unfocused, but she visibly relaxed as everyone but the twins removed their hoods, revealing children.

"Thank you… I wish I could get you anything." She smiled weakly, "Please, why are you here?" The group turned to Faris, who swallowed uncomfortably.

"Are you Martha?" He began. After she nodded her head, he reached into his satchel and pulled out a brass locket and a bag of gold. The woman's eyes came to focus on the socket, they began to well up with tears.

The group was confused, all except Venka who had remembered when Faris pocketed that locket. Back when they had been ambushed.

"This belonged to your husband, and this was the pay he was owed, I would have come sooner if I could find you… I'm so sorry." He lay the gold down, the man had been paid 10 gold for his services, but Faris advocated they raise it to 100 gold, that much could take care of a family like his for more than a few decades if they were careful, but then he also knew the city was likely more expensive. Dustin was surprised by the sheer amount of gold, likely never seeing that much coinage in his entire life, but Martha was concentrated on her locket, holding it close.

"Was he, was he buried?"

Faris nodded, tearing up, "And the ones who killed him are long dead. He was a brave and loyal driver, I know this doesn't equal him in the slightest, but it was the best I could do."

She nodded, smiling, "Thank you," she whispered, begore slipping into a painful wheezing cough that made Faris wish to cover his ears and grit his teeth. He turned to Katya.

"Do the Protectors of Life know any ways to counter this disease?"

"No! All we can do is bolster the strength of the one who is afflicted, but she's so deep in! I'll try anyway!" Katya began chanting, her magic washed over Martha, soothing her somewhat as she relaxed, exhausted from the coughing. "This isn't good! We need a natural remedy to help her heal, magic can only do so much."

"What do you mean! It's magic!" Nya asked indignantly, she was now scared for the woman's life, the disease had taken her aunt.

Faris admitted that Katya was right, as opposed to chickenpox, which was a virus, murk was caused by bacteria that originated from the stomach, and while its symptoms were similar, Murk had a higher fatality rate and a surprising resistance to magical treatment. Angela had theorized it was a variation of another strain, that had grown this immunity due to years of experimentation by Galbatorix's pet magicians.

"Katya, do you know how to formulate the cure?" He asked.

Katya nodded seriously, but spoke. "I can't leave her though, she's on the critical stages, the stress of her husband's death had a negative impact on her illness." She sighed worriedly, "The training really came in handy, but I can't keep this up forever." Venka placed her hand on Katya's shoulder,

"But I can, please, let me help." Katya looked at Venka's determined expression and nodded, they both closed their eyes, Faris could tell that unlike his contact theirs was relatively shallow, which made sense as they only shared energy.

"Okay! We need these three ingredients, luckily, most can be found with the Protectors of Life, unluckily the last ingredient is only found in Du Weldenvarden or Farthen Dûr." The group groaned at her words.

"What is it?" Morgan asked.

"We need Tunivor's Nectar."

"Wait isn't that for curing the drug Skilna Bragh!" Faris replied with shock.

"A strain of highly contagious bad humors exist, which replicate the drug's effects and actually create it in the body, but in an infinitesimally smaller dosage." Katya spoke, sounding defeated,

Faris wracked his brain before opening them wide. "Wait! My master taught me a way to synthesize a replacement for Tunivor's nectar!"

Katya looked up surprised and hopeful. "How?!"

"We need raw Seithr oil, and Cardus weed, then…" Faris grew silent.

"What Faris?!" Nya demanded.

"We need Fire Weed."

Katya pondered, "we can get the Cardus weed easily, and the Seithr oil with some difficulty from a jeweler, but the Fire Weed is still a no go…."

"I noticed a bit of fire weed on Ventus." Faris turned in surprise as he looked at Alanna.

"When?" He asked.

"During our jaunt here, I saw Ventus in the middle of a hunt, the red plant's pungent smell was as clear as starlight to me."

"That does little to help us." Venka sighed. "We won't know where he got it."

"Actually, we could." Everyone turned to look at Faris. "Owls don't have the digestive systems we have, and they don't have the teeth to chew their food so they swallow it whole. So, they compress the stuff in their gizzard and puke it out as hard pellets." The group looked at him questioningly. "That day… he yarped out the remains of a rare bird that lives in the northern reaches of the forest, it's more common in Du Weldenvarden…" He stopped at the bewilderment on his friend's faces. "…Or so I've heard from my master, this bird has nests in black and white striped trees, and fire weed shares a symbiotic roll with its roots, preventing scavenging and parasites in exchange for the nutrients."

Morgan smiled, "Okay then, we have a plan, Katya and Venka stay to help keep Martha stable, I and Nya can collect the majority of the ingredients from the school, and Faris and the twins can go get the fire weed." Everyone nodded.

As they walked out the hut Alanna and Dusan raised their hands to halt the procession. Faris kept his face calm as he turned to Nya and Dusan, "New plan, we need you two to stay and guard the hut from the 'tax collectors'." They nodded, "No killing, but you can maim." Faris turned to Alanna and Morgan, "we need to hurry then."

They dashed into the open courtyard, Faris saw a hand reach out with a club only to spasm as a rock smashed into it, Dusan leaped into action, Nya at his flank, they went to town on the thugs who were surprised at the skill and ferocity on display. Dusan was untouchable it seemed, and Faris noted with pride that Nya had begun to incorporate a bit of the basics of Karate into her previously free-formed fighting style. Even with those two making the biggest distractions the three had to deal with some more goons attacking them. Alanna took the lead, knocking humans out with deft and quick blows to the back of the head, Faris struck them in sensitive nerve areas to bring them down hard, Morgan for his troubles kicked hard, aiming in between the legs of several of those men, Faris winced each time, yet also suppressed laughter as Morgan mumbled his apologies to each crippled victim in his path. Eventually they broke out, slowing to a walk as the men avoided them and backed off back into the alley.

"I hope they'll be alright; we aren't allowed to use magic in the city." Morgan said.

"That didn't stop you though."

"That was different, we were saving the delicious confectionaries you prepared for those children, how could we not!" He sighed. "That place! In this beautiful city, does our Queen even know?"

"I doubt she could do much to help it, we are at war, this holds less than 1% of the entire city's population, and there are only a few dozen of it. So maybe 9% poverty at most? Better than Galbatorix many would say." Faris looked at the people, all walking and doing business, unaware of the fight to save a woman's life just half a mile away. Faris turned to Morgan, "Are you sure you can procure the items?"

Morgan nodded, "I know a senior student researcher who's part of my guild, he's a gold rank but he's a good guy, if only overeager." Faris nodded, he turned to Alanna who nodded back, her eyes glittering in the gloom, the group separated, Morgan to their school, and Faris and Alanna out to the forest.


	35. Chapter 35

Faris and Alanna entered the forest easily, as they walked towards the north-eastern edge of the forest Faris began singing a tune.

"That is a beautiful song."

"My mother used to sing it to me."

"Oh? It sounds so sad though."

"She said her people had to go through an extreme struggle…" He paused, he wasn't humming his mother's lullaby, he was humming Damien's mother's lullaby. He stopped singing.

"Are you alright Faris?"

"I'm good. I just, sometimes I fear losing sight of who I am."

"You remind me of a human boy I met a long time ago."

Faris turned his head in confusion.

"Yes, he was always curious, but when we first met him, he held a somber pained reserve, on account of an injury he received."

_She's talking about Eragon._ Faris looked at her now, even as they walked forward.

"He was bonded to someone, and expressed that very same fear you just mentioned now. Faris, if that is what plagues you, whatever is part of you is yourself, don't run away from it."

"Thank you for the inspiring words, but it isn't that easy."

They walked on in silence for a bit until they began to spot the white and black trees, they reminded Faris of Birch trees, and as he looked around, he noticed most of the roots were covered in short red plants.

"Fire weed, but it's not mature, we need to find a mature batch if I want to be able to synthesize the nectar."

Alanna looked ahead. "One of the trees was cut down, and the weeds taken." They rush over, allowing Faris to see that the damage was recently done. Alanna pointed ahead. "Whoever it was is continuing on ahead, the birds say that it was a group of them, wearing dark purple robes. One had a tattoo resembling a gnarled hand on his forehead. She looked at Faris, then back ahead. "Did I make you angry?" Alanna asked concerned.

"No, but whatever we do, those men cannot escape." They leapt from their covering, bearing down on the men quickly. Alanna stopped him once they reached within a few dozen feet, hiding in brush Faris motioned that they listen in for a bit.

"…I'm telling you; we should just leave now; I don't like being this close to that blasted city."

"We have to wait, or else Meior will be left behind otherwise."

"Ah who cares! She's got that terrible habit of hers!"

"We wait." The men quieted as the last one spoke, he was taller than the rest of them, shaven completely, and sported a hand shaped black tattoo on his forehead.

"But…sir."

"We… wait."

"Hmmm, so, when will we know when she kills the red head?"

Faris and Alanna watched them. "These must be the Black Hand Vanir warned us of, what should we do? I believe they may have been referring to Venka…" She turned to look for Faris but saw him charge into the area, his satchel on the ground, two gauntlets equipped. She widened her eyes as she punched the first cultist with superhuman speed, it was still slower than her, but faster than any human. By the time she leapt from her hiding spot and dispatched two cultists Faris had already struck the cultist who had mentioned a red-head. She could only watch the ferocity in his face as he broke the man's arm in a crushing grip. He charged the group of remaining cultists, only to leap back as the area in front of him exploded in a huge combination of fire and ice and electricity. He continued to dodge these explosions, breaking trees like a lumberman, letting them fall towards his quarry. Eventually they formed a large clearing.

"Who are you!" One of the cultists spat in anger, in front of him stood two children, yet their mental dueling was facing down his group's like a group of elite mages.

Faris tried to charge forward but Alanna held him back. "Faris, this is madness! We need at least one alive for questioning!"

Faris brushed her arm off. "I'll tear it from his mind." He growled.

Arrows flew towards them, at least a dozen, as the arrows flew Alanna raised her hand, stopping them. Leaping from the forest 12 archers and another dozen men and women comprised of spearmen, sword users, and a few axe and dagger users charged towards the duo. Faris growled as he snapped a spear in half, punching the offending user in the face as Alanna leapt over the group, striking down 2 archers as she landed. Three swordsmen charged him, and Faris had no choice but to retreat, but not before pushing another into their way and grabbing the broken spear, launching it at an archer, knocking him down. Alanna danced with her exposed blade, striking down her foes quickly, she meant to spare them, if only so that there would be others after Faris was finished, perhaps this was the secret he hid. Vanir had told her that during the war he had witnessed human children numbed by atrocities, perhaps that was it. She did not have much time to dwell on it as a blast of pure force shot her into a tree, her wards held but as she fell the soldiers swarmed around her. She struggled, kicking and punching away as they swarmed her, blades brought down to wear at her wards. As she continued this struggle, Faris charged towards to try and help her, but he was held down by magic. He turned to the mages, who were now winning their mental assault, Alanna was too distracted as she struggled, eventually he began to hear her scream in terror as her wards began to slowly fail. Panic reached out to him as he struggled against the wards. But he didn't have the magical ability to hold back five mages, he tried to attack the soldiers but they were shielded by the mages. He began to panic, he wasn't strong enough, they were going to die, and his friends would be working all for naught.

_Now you're being the coward!_ Faris flinched

_No, I'm not! You know why I do this! You understand!_ He screamed in his mental walls.

_So, you're going to let her die?! Let your friends down? Let them get away?_

_NO!_ Faris redoubled his efforts, but he didn't have the resources to defend himself and connect himself to nature.

_We do have the resources Faris, you know we do._

Faris continued to struggle.

_Faris! You are acting just like I did, don't be like this, don't be like me, hate me, resent me, despise me, but don't reject yourself and blame things outside your power, that's what made me the way I am, the way I was, if you blame me for your strife…_

"What if I don't want to be better!?" Faris screamed. This caused everyone to pause for a bit, freeing Alanna to redouble their efforts, one of the mages split off to force her back down, Faris could do nothing about it. _If I rejoin you…_

_You'll go away?_ Damien's voice did not sound for a bit, before continuing, in a softer tone, _I may be the one with starting knowledge, but who's charm did Venka fall for? Whose charisma charmed and inspired not only Bergan, but the rest of these First-Years. Bergan and Haya Ser are your parents Faris, if not for you, my connection to them would be as strained and weak as my connection to my original parents. And even then, we hummed my mother's song. Do you think that things will change if we connect again? You already know we are one and the same! Nothing will change._

_Of course, it will! For one you're cowardly, and too arrogant for your own good. _Faris railed on uselessly in his head.

_And you are too hotheaded, too childish, and as equally arrogant. You think either of us got were we were today without the other._

Faris scowled visibly. The mages locked in mental battle looked at his display in confusion, his mind seemed, fractured, like two entities shared the same spot, neither were complete minds, but added together was more than a single whole. This made it hard to get a grasp on and entangle the boy's mind. A mage took out a blade, coated in Seithr oil, and approached Faris now, ready to end the fight. Alanna was mostly spent, and Faris seemed almost unresponsive as he slumped in his hold.

_Faris we are the same person! Whether we like it or not, we are the same person, I am responsible for my life until now, I choose to let my mistakes be part of who I am, please… for Venka… I am sorry…_

Faris was silent as the mages broke the last lines of his defense. He didn't utter a word as the mage with the dagger grabbed him by the neck.

"Good bye child, and good riddance." The mage brought his blade down to stab the boy's heart, but something stopped it. He looked to see a vine had entangled it. As he struggled to remove it, he felt the boy strike him, but it was different from before, the boy was stronger as he struck him mentally, his form of disjointed attacks was there again, but with more rapid of a pace, his allies tried to band together but they were distracted by all the creeping vines. In horror one of the mages gasped as the fallen trees began to whither and rot away, as if all their nutrients had been drained by some sort of tree Vampire. Faris opened his eyes, which were now a darker shade of blue.

"Let us go." He blew through the mage's wards. The mage began to panic as Faris flitted through his memories like one flipped through the books of a page, collapsing as Faris used the stamina he absorbed from the surrounding area to put the mage to sleep and strike the others.

They banded together now, striking him as one.

"_You're the straight forward types huh, let's see."_ He batted aside their mental assault with ease. _"A 25, a 45, and a 35, you work well enough together to make the equivalent of a 150, no wonder all five of you were beating us, too bad, I'm a 140 myself, and I've never lost to anyone less than twice as strong."_

His wards took a massive dip as several trees surrounding him died, he held back his puke as he saw a mage had joined the fray. A woman with wild green eyes and black hair. Her mouth was twisted into a sadistic smile as red lightning burst out, striking at Faris's wards. Another batch of trees and the grass in the clearing died as they provided the energy for his wards. He looked at her, and struck with his full mental ability. She yelped in panic as even the combined efforts of her and the three could not hold him back.

"Stop!" Faris paused, he had been halfway from killing the three mages, who he had gathered were named Slean, Fumor, and Isak, he turned to the voice, and their leader, the tattooed head man named Vaun stood, Alanna in his hands, a dagger to her neck. "Surrender or she dies."

Faris blinked, several more trees died as Vaun was blown back, he screamed as he looked at the stumps were his hands used to be, in Faris's arms lay Alanna, who had been teleported into his, he turned towards the soldiers, they had been protected by Vaun, who's concentration was now broken, he took enough of their energy to derive them unable to move out of sheer exhaustion, using it to hold the 5 mages still alive. The woman, who was undoubtedly Meior smiled at him.

"So, you must be Faris."

"That is our name yes. And you are Meior the berserker."

She widened her eyes in bemusement. "Oh, so what spy do I have to thank for you knowing that information."

"Well actually we know more than that, such as the fact you have a mole on your-" His next sentence was cut off as he flicked his head out of the way of a rushing dagger.

Meior had an inflamed face. "Shut up!" she hissed.

Faris smiled. "Sorry, we tend to be a prick when I'm fucking pissed." The three mages finally succumbed to his mental strikes, their mana being drained and entering the large quartz crystal on his gauntlet. Meior flinched and Faris winked at her before running. "Left butt cheek!"

No sooner had he said that as a red flash filled the air, a few dozen soldiers and ten more magicians ran into the area.

"Lady Meior!" One of them yelled. "Are you unharmed?!"

"Yes," she replied, "but see to Vaun and the others" She sighed, this was a headache, first one pair of children now the next, at least they had the cultured weed. She reached into the satchel Fumor had been holding. Inside of it was not Fire Weed, but a single piece of parchment with a hand crudely drawn on hand, the fist was clenched all except for the middle finger, which was stuck up. Below it in neat cursive read:

_MY REGARDS TO YOU AND YOUR MEN, I HOPE THIS MIDDLE FINGER FINDS YOU IN GOOD HEALTH_

She had no idea what this meant, but she could understand it was a slight of some sort. But that didn't matter, they failed to get the fire weed. She rushed her soldiers back to the grove the trees grew in; it was too quiet as she looked around.

"Fuck they took it all! Even the saplings?!" A solder stabbed the ground with his spear. Meior stepped forward, the ground crunched oddly below her, looking down the floor was covered in a green powder she had not observed before.

"Moss? A soldier asked."

Before she could respond a paper crane gently wafted down from a tree, it flew around her a bit, before surrounding her soldier before it landed on the floor. Another stabbed it with his sword.

"What could it-"

The paper set on fire, and the explosion drowned out whatever he had meant to say.

Faris ran on foot, Alanna clutched in his hands princess style as he ran towards the castle. His Satchel was stuffed to the brim with Fire Weed. As he continued to run, he heard a massive explosion and saw the smoke cloud. Turning around he remarked, "You know, we always though it was weird that the powder was green." He turned back to the castle, and looked at Alanna, "when did you wake up?"

"When you completed yourself, I began to awaken as you quickly siphoned energy into me."

"I didn't want to use the trees."

"I know… you can let me down."

As Faris let her down she looked at him before bowing.

"Faris-finiarel, I did not mean to pry but I heard your inner thoughts, we had still been connected, I had not known that your issue was a malady of the mind. Thank you for saving my life."

Faris grinned. "Hey it's the least I could do, though I wish I had captured one, but I had my hands full with you and the fire weed."

"I noticed, you could have pressed on, you were victorious. Why did you leave?"

Faris stuck out three fingers. "One: you were compromised at the moment, I wished to keep their attention on me, if they weren't paying attention to me, they might have attacked you. Two: I siphoned the majority of energy into you, my wards wouldn't have held up against a panicked suicide attack. Three: "He paused and sighed, "The trees were weighing on my conscious, too many were dying."

"That didn't stop you at first."

"No, it didn't, but I wasn't myself."

Alanna smiled sadly, "Should I call you something different?"

He shook his head, "Like I told Dusan, I'm me, and no one else." He quickened his pace, "Now I didn't like what that bastard said about that bitch killing a red-head. We need to get back quickly."

Alanna nodded, putting on her hood as they rushed back towards the castle. The sun beginning to set…

"Hmm? Not here? Where is he then?" Morgan asked, the sun was still high in the sky, he had immediately gone to his guild to find his friend Surmon, the gold initiate would have been a great help in finding his items quickly.

"I'm sorry sir Morgan, he's been promoted to Topaz and assigned down in Surda."

Morgan widened his eyes in surprise and elation. "Oh! Congrats to him! Then can you help me find these items…"

The gathering of the items went smoothly, Morgan got his satchel and began to leave the school. He quickly made his way towards the slums, eventually he ran into the middle area. As he walked, he suddenly stopped, leaping to the side as a hail of arrows nearly pin cushioned him. He turned in alarm to see a beautiful woman with black hair and wild green eyes, she was accompanied by several dozen men and women.

"Hello lovely miss." Morgan bowed. "I would ask if I could help you but I fear part of that includes my death."

"Smart boy…" The woman said, "Cute too, but I won't kill you if you can answer a simple question."

"Oh?" Morgan prepared his defenses. "And pray tell what would it be?"

"I am looking for a girl with fiery red hair and eyes an almost prettier shade than mine."

Morgan felt a chill as he thought of Venka, "That sounds familiar yes,"

"Oh? Then perhaps you could tell us?" The woman smiled. "My soldiers and I would rather not riddle you with holes."

"Oh, thank goodness, then let me point the way."

A gigantic blast of lightning arced out of his hand and blew up a group of soldiers, they fell to the ground, spasming as the pure energy tore through their minor wards.

"Oops!" Morgan yelled as he ran.

The soldiers quickly surrounded him, forming a circle. The woman entered the circle.

"You know boy, that was some serious power, why don't you join me?"

"No thank you, I'm not so easy to throw my heart into the hands of every beautiful woman who crosses my path."

Morgan charged her, combining a physical fight with a mental assault, she blocked his metal attack almost as easily as she smacked him in the face. Luckily, he was already fit, that mixed with the extra training let him withstand the shock of her punch.

"Pity…" She charged forward, preparing to stomp his head in, he rolled out of the way, scrambling backwards to avoid her kick. He tripped her up before scrambling up and kicking the way he had been taught by Faris. She blocked his fist, only for him to hear an audible crack as her face twisted.

"That's the power of a proper kick." He doubled his efforts, physical and mental assault in tandem, she barely held against his attacks. As he went for a round house kick, she slipped into inside his guard.

"Your technique is interesting, but it lacks both refinement and a proper way to deal with close up brawling." She said, cocking her fist back for a massive punch, her smile was replaced with angry screaming as the ground around her exploded in a bust of electricity.

"Now that I'm thinking about it… her eyes are way prettier than yours!" He threw his fist for a punch, but stopped as he felt a spear go through his sides. He coughed, lungs deflated and beginning to fill with blood as he collapsed. The woman raised her fist in anger, her body slowly healing from the burns.

"Kill him then men." She said, almost sounding disappointed.

The spear men gathered around Morgan, prepared to kill him. Morgan shut his eyes tightly.

A shinking sound was heard, causing Morgan to open his eyes, the heads of the soldiers lay on the floor, and the woman was away from him, nursing a shoulder wound, standing in front of him was a girl in dark blue cloak. He recognized her as Lord Jaya's daughter.

"You know, I just hate the fact someone would have hair and eyes like mine." She said, "Well I'll be happy with just being prettier than you."

The woman snarled, charging at the First-Year, who handled her flailing attacks with ease. Dodging with the grace of a dancer.

"You know, this is actually kind of boring." She kicked the woman hard, knocking her into the wall in a feat of superhuman strength. "Hey Morgan, your kick was sort of like that right?" She smiled when he nodded absentmindedly.

"Stay still, we don't want you croaking." Morgan turned to see Bartholomew, one knee down healing him. "Us kids with similar names need to stick together you know?" He winks at Morgan. The soldiers begin to charge them, only for Bartholomew to whistle, crashing into the ground is what looks like a metal statue of a man with the face a bull. The metal muscles were knotted and detailed, the massive metal man stood at over 14 feet tall, and was equipped with large and heavy looking axes. It made quick work at the majority of soldiers; who's weapons could not even scratch the golem. "State of the art attack model, its biggest weakness is just how much mana it costs, but I procured a bit from Venka after trading for her favorite desert, you better pay me back."

The remaining soldiers fled alongside the woman. Seya made no attempt to follow, merely opening a hand mirror and closing it.

"Don't forget to pay me." Bartholomew said, helping Morgan up.

Morgan laughed, "Fine then old friend, put it on my tab…"

Nya and Dusan had no trouble taking on the thugs, Nya had been apprehensive at first, but she had immediately calmed when the men proved to be incompetent fighters.

_Dodge left, counter punch, haymaker, dodge right, counter punch, haymaker, eye, groin, groin, groin, groin._

4 men lay collapsed at her feet as she charged into the next group. Dusan for his part handled his opponents with the ease of a seasoned warrior pushing back a troop of tantrummy toddlers. Humans were a dichotomous people, he reasoned, capable of great greed, evil, and injustice. But they were also capable of good and kindness, he was happy to have made the friends that he had made.

Nya raised her fist, punching another thug in the face in an uppercut, as another thug grabbed for her, she twisted his wrist. She then kneed him in the face.

"How are you handling Dusan?" She asked, breathing hard.

"I am well, do you need help?"

"Me?" She laughed breathlessly, her lungs burned and her muscles shook from using the temporary strengthening technique from her guild, it drained her stamina quite a bit. "No, I'm fine!" It was nothing compared to yesterday's grueling bootcamp. She looked at the men who charged towards her, then, struck by a miracle of inspiration whispered some words in the ancient language, sighing as countless thugs fell, tripping each other over the now extremely slippery floor. Nya extended her hand to clothesline the thug who slipped forward, pushing him back into the fray. After resting a bit, she got back up, removed the spell, and charged forward.

Eventually the fight dragged into the hour mark. Nya recovered exhausted as the men hesitated to approach, terrified of the monster of a boy who stood before him, who broke a man's hand just by clutching it.

"We just want the woman to pay her debts." A man in the middle screamed.

"How much!" Nya screamed back.

The men looked at each other, then back at Nya, "Interest accrues daily, she owes 50 gold."

Nya sighed, they knew no one here could afford something that high. She opened her pack and tossed out two small bags.

The man scrambled to pick it up, looking inside, he looked up and smiled. "Well… see, interest doubled again."

His smile twisted into a scream of pain as Faris kicked him in the nuts hard enough to make him foam in the mouth. Faris deftly picked up the money bags and looked at the thugs.

"Hey, we are in a pretty bad mood, the next person to say or do anything stupid is going to die."

He started counting to ten. Barely reaching five he could only shake his head as three thugs reached forward to grab him, pulling them close he used their momentum against them, dragging them unto the ground, and stabbing each of them in the hand once.

The men began to scream as their hands began to bubble. The rest of the thugs scrambled backwards. Seithr Oil poisoning was known, and its victims were many in these slums. After a few seconds Faris took a lit torch and burned their stump hands, using it to distract from his magical treating of the acid.

The men looked dumbfounded as they weren't piles of slag on the ground. Faris hunched down and looked at them, contempt heavy on his face. "If you return here Norman…."

The middle thug's face blanched as the boy said his name.

"This message is for Nog and Jaspen as well, tell Uglauw that I will find his wife and daughter if he even thinks about bringing a single one of you goons near here, and that I already know where their safe house is. Tell him that if he wants to see his son come back from school, he calls off the debt he claims Martha owes." He opens Nya's satchel, and tosses a handful of coins. "Not included your insane interest, this is how much is owed. So, let this be the end. Oh, and if you don't actually do it? Well, Veronica may experience trouble at the bar." He observed their faces with a macabre smile. "Good luck."

As they sprinted away Nya approached him, "How do you know all of them?"

"I don't, I observed their minds as we approached. But now I know where they all live; I plan of giving each of them a special little visit as some point." He turned to Alanna, who was holding his satchel full of fire weed. "So, where's Morgan?"

"He's inside, they're waiting for you, he was pretty under the weather, some woman with black hair and green eyes hurt him, but he's fine." Faris's mind drifted to Meior, and he clenched his fists, "We'll have to tell the school. But right now, we have to save Martha."


	36. Chapter 36

Faris entered the room, it was much warmer than before, which he was thankful for. "Good guys, I see you raised the temperature to combat the illness." He walked towards the group, and stopped.

"Hiiii-!"

Faris stared at Seya with a mix of rage and confusion. He began to storm towards her but Morgan stopped him.

"Wait! She saved my life."

Faris without skipping a beat brushed past and bowed. "I, don't particularly care for you, but thank you for saving my friend."

Seya raised one eyebrow quizzically, smiling as she noticed his clenched fists. "Did I piss you off in our earlier encounter?" She smiled at Venka, "Did your boyfriend tell you about his and my fun time?"

Venka looked at her blankly and turned to Faris, "Faris, is she making fun of us?"

"I think she is Venka…" Faris smiled as he began to chop up and clean the ingredients to create the synthesized nectar replacement.

"Oh? You haven't called me V since we met when you were 5." Venka smiled.

"I thought it was unfair to get rid of it, it's like an old friend."

Seya mock gagged at their display.

"Faris, can we get back to topic, are you almost done?" Katya groaned.

Faris walked over, handing Katya the synthesized mixture in a vial. "Just needed it to cool down."

She turned to Venka, who took over keeping the sickly woman alive. Her son, Dustin, kept a constant vigil over her, not leaving her side or paying attention to everyone else's actions. Martha for her part was asleep. Katya began to take the various ingredients and place them in a large bowl, mixing it while chanting healing and growth in the ancient language while mixing. Faris felt the magic going in and mixing in with the ingredients. Everyone held their breath as the concoction began to glow a warm blue light before it faded back in. When the brew finally finished Katya slumped over, exhausted. Morgan caught her before she fell.

"I'm fine, please wake her up, the sooner she gets it the better…"

Seven days had passed since then. Faris had a grand time explaining the attack by the Black Hand to the council of Thirteen. They had taken the news relatively well. Only two of them threatened to revoke his privileges as a student. But Alanna and Dusan's testimonies kept him in the clear. Vanir and the elves were upset at first, but the twin's glowing praise of Faris and the rest of their new friends eased the tension. As it was, they were barred from leaving the school grounds for a month.

In order to ease their worries, Alanna recommended sending Ventus over to keep an eye on Martha and her son. By placing a trinket with a tiny mirror on Ventus, Faris was able to see the goings on in the city whenever he flew around. He was thankful to find that his threats kept the goons away from that section of the slums. And was elated to see that in a few days the woman made a recovery. Faris spent the rest of the month quietly. He spent is nights reliving his life as Damien, he still somewhat had this odd partition between them, but it was no longer as apparent. This acceptance left Faris happier, and helped restore some of his skills in combat and mental dueling.

"Are you okay?" Venka asked Faris as they jogged across the track. The Pearl students normally skipped it but due to the hype of the grand games and Faris and his team's demonstration that increasing physical stamina helped out in magical combat, the students were inspired to begin to try. Unfortunately, they were all still quite terrible. As it was Nya was at the head of the pack, she had benefited the most from Faris's brutal bootcamps, and his body just beginning to start going through puberty so the First-Years began to overtake him, even Venka to his chagrin began to pull ahead in tests of speed and endurance.

"If you mean my head? I'm fine." Faris nearly lost his hand-to-hand combat session with Nya, and only won after headbutting her fist cutting of a punch. The others had begun to overtake him in the respective martial arts he had taught them, and the twins had already blown past him. This bothered him, but even more so he did his best to keep the others from treating him with pity. Even if they were more skilled than he was in the each of their respectively chosen skills, he was still an all-around better combatant. "I'm okay with the fact you guys got better than me in martial arts on an individual level. Besides, I'm a better mental duelist than all of you combined." He had even finally been able to best Alanna in mental combat, the twins were his best practice, and they improved all together. He had even learned elven swordsmanship, their attacks took full use of their flexible bodies and attacked at unorthodox angles. Faris slowly began to incorporate this into his martial skills. The difficulty of it is what let him excuse himself for the others surpassing him on the individual single skill level.

"As long as you are okay." She smiled, kissing him on the cheek.

Faris smiled goofily. The past month they had gotten closer. While he didn't think accepting 'Damien' changed him, he felt more confident talking to her and displaying tiny nuggets of his affection for her. She had accepted the incident with Seya with relative understanding and shared his distaste for the older girl. This acceptance of the incident visibly annoyed Seya, who pushed her way into their group. The rest of them accepted her easily, especially Morgan, who owed her his life alongside Bartholomew, who also grudgingly joined them due to rising classroom pressure to have groups.

"I still don't understand why you are all doing this." He huffed, chewing on a piece of mutton.

"I concur, though I don't need to attend this silly exercise." Seya was drinking tea, the two of them sat on a simple cloth, they had watched the Pearl Initiates struggling with the physical drills, and sarcastically clapped when the First-Years excelled. "I would have thought as much, seeing as how you all used to disappear into those woods." Seya smirked.

Faris for his part tolerated their insults, with them in his group challenges came less frequently, and he was able to focus on supplemental study. Today however Alanna spoke up. "Are you certain you two should relax like this? Even my brother and I partake in the exercises to the best of our ability."

"I'm not built for physical activity, and unlike you all my guild doesn't need its members to be able to fight." Bartholomew took a sip of his tea.

"Then what about you?" Alanna turned to Seya.

"Please, I'm stronger than any of them, you can ask Faris-boy over there, he's probably their most skilled fighter and he lost."

The others turned to look at Faris, who shrugged. "Yeah, I lost, she's kind of superhuman."

"And I don't believe any of you could take me on when I'm holding back."

"Oh no they could all take you if you haven't improved." Faris said dryly.

Seya smiled smugly, "I don't believe that. Could you beat me?"

Faris shook his head, "I'm not strong enough, but they could beat you."

"But you beat me Faris?" Nya looked at him confused, "How can we beat her, yet she can beat you, and you beat us?"

Faris smiled, "Cause unless she's got more than she showed me, she's not nearly impressive enough."

Seya's eye twitched, "I really do like you Faris, no other boy has infuriated me this much. You don't want to reconsider a… ahem, closer relationship?"

Faris turned around, "No thanks, I don't mess with psychos and besides, I find such a 'Daddy's girl' disappointing."

Faris counted to ten, turning around he kept his face calm as he saw his friends, pushing back Seya, who's fist had been closing in to striking him. She had her same excited smirk she had on when he first attacked him, looking at his friends, she finally spoke up.

"Fine, I admit they are all better than when I first met them." She winked at Venka, "Especially you Venka! You go girl! You've gotten better than the girl who fell for a simple sleep spell." She turned to Faris, "What are your rules?"

The first-years looked nervous as they faced down Seya.

"Are you sure we can beat her Faris?" Nya said nervously, "We literally fought you as a team a few days ago and lost."

"You noticed how you do better against me when you fight me one on one right?" He began.

"Well yes…" Morgan stated, "But you normally fight each of us one on one after the group fight, it should likely go differently if we started with the one on ones."

"Nope," Faris replied lightly, he looked over to Seya, who was looking at them with a lazy expression, she winked and blew him a kiss He waived back, causing her to cross her arms and look away. "If you remember, I stated my style of dueling mentally works best by turning the opponent's strength against them. You're all prodigies, so your understanding of your bodies has made it much more difficult for me to utilize that, but my greater experience is the only reason I still pull up ahead, in a few years I'll probably catch up again, but until then I'm okay with the way things are going, as the more skilled you get, the better we all improve." He looked at them again. "Martial arts were made for the weak to face down those stronger than them, but in the hands of the already strong it makes a powerful warrior. Seya is scary, and I believe she has martial skills similar, but she is sloppy, she overly relies on her strength and speed."

He pointed at Venka, "You remember the strengthening spell, right?" She nodded. "Good, you all should take the time to understand how she fights, be cautious and protect your vitals, spells targeting your opponent are not allowed, and this is purely a duel of physical skills, she's above your level in a mental fight."

Morgan, Nya, and Katya looked at Seya nervously.

"Don't worry guys! We've got this!" Venka smiled, patting them all on the back. She took up a martial stance, hands forward beckoning Seya, who merely rolled her eyes.

"I hope you don't completely bore me." She approached them causally, walking towards Nya, who had taken a stance of her own. "Come on then." She widened her eyes slightly as Nya's fist flew towards her faster than she had observed before, hitting her squarely in the jaw. She barely had enough time to block the second blow before Katya elbowed her in the middle of the back. She threw Nya towards Katya, and when they hit each other they tumbled in the dirt. She charged them only to be tripped up by Venka. Leaping back, she felt the back of her neck cool slightly as a large shadow came behind her, barely turning in time to block a flying kick from Morgan. "Oh! Aren't you supposed to be a gentleman?" She quipped, holding his foot with a shaking hand.

"I'm sorry madam, but my heart is closer tied to these lovely ladies, and my friend Faris." He used his grounded foot to jump towards her, pushing her back somewhat with his closed foot into Venka's kick.

Seya stumbled away, dodging their coordinated attacks with clumsy proficiency, their preliminary attacks catching her off guard and off tempo. Faris nodded in approval of his team's teamwork. Over the month the point of the group battle was to teach them how to fight as a cohesive unit and not get in the way of each other, his ability to redirect the flow of combat was the best training method, as their attempts to overcome his analytical and adaptive abilities served as the perfect catalyst to understand each other's tempo. He also had them spar with each other and sometimes with either of the elves to let loose. He narrowed his eyes at Seya's movements, she was fighting in a sloppy way, completely worse than when she fought him.

_Is she really that bad at fighting groups? Then again, she is letting them surround her, though she's not displaying nearly the same speed she used against me in the beginning. Maybe they injured her?_

His hope for that outcome was dashed when she caught a haymaker from Nya and blocked Katya's devastating low kick.

"Okay, maybe your little friend had a point." Seya smiles fiercely, her eyes taking on a more manic light. "You all are certainly are almost at what he was when he faced me, so fighting you four while holding back is stupid. To a point." She proceeded to punch Morgan hard in the face, he barely blocked it, being knocked back by the force of her punch. She went fully offensive at the group, who each individually didn't have the capability of stopping her. As it were whenever she began to concentrate on one person, another would employ a strike to distract her, either she took the blow or she dodged. She found to her annoyance that despite their proximity they never managed to hit another team member, almost as if they inherently knew where to space themselves.

_That's prodigies for you._ Faris had 5 years of experience in this world, coupled with another 10 from earth, mixed in with a photographic memory that could be instantaneously recalled at any moment. And yet they surpassed him in just a month and two weeks. Then again, they only concentrated on one martial art each, and Faris wasn't truly well disposed to any one of those martial arts, but his martial arts of choice weren't something necessary to teach them or accidentally expose them to, so he didn't use it when training them, it was by that nature unrefined then and dangerous to try and work on while actually fighting. He snapped out of his thoughts when he saw Venka get tossed into the air. Seya was going at the same level she went when she overwhelmed him, and beat them down almost handily. As it was, she could never take any one of them down as they were skilled enough to last long enough for at least two of them to recover and strike back.

Venka didn't like the look in Seya's eyes, and her lungs had begun to hurt, even with her breathing techniques Seya's speed was too much for her to keep up the natural flow and rhythm in Kung Fu. Whenever she was about to be overwhelmed though one of the others would leap in, she'd spend maybe a few seconds recovering while trying to get her bearings and position herself before leaping back into the fray. Eventually she raised her left hand, and stuck two fingers out.

Morgan's arms throbbed in pain, blocking Seya's punch was extremely difficult, she had almost broken it, even after all the strengthening he went through. _I'll take care to leap with a blow like that, I observed Faris doing that to avoid the damage he couldn't block or dodge entirely._ His concentration broke when he saw Venka raised her hand and made her signal. Seya caught on to his distraction and tackled him, but he had already seen the signal, smiling even as he hit the floor. He prepared his words.

Katya was exhausted and hitting Seya was like striking a marble wall, and she knew all about that. Faris had made her and Nya gather buckets of sand, carry them a few miles, then grip them, as well as punch the sand until their hands became ragged and exhausted, even after healing them they still remained somewhat callused. Nya had expressed annoyance over it but it grew to surprise and elation when she was able to break through hard wood tables. This excitement led to an attempt to break more things with mere punches, not the least of which was a marble wall in her dorm. She was lucky she had exemplary healing skills. As she punched and kicked, Seya tackled Morgan, looking around she spotted Venka's signal, charging towards Seya and Morgan she began gathering magic.

Nya focused on dodging, blocking, and countering Seya's attacks, she was the frontline defender and went down the least amount of times, much to Seya's anger and surprise. _She favor's her left hand, but she's right-handed? Oh, it was a bait and switch, wow! Okay, she's understood low kicks, so perhaps a high kick followed by intermediate punch? Success!_ She punched Seya in the stomach just before she could overwhelm Nya, allowing her to rest for a bit. She widened her eyes when Nya raised her hand, then leaped in the air, coming down with a flying kick as she uttered, "Ramr edtha!" (strengthen me)

Seya widened her eyes as they all uttered the same phrase. Then looked in surprise as Morgan nearly overpowered her. Even then she barely blocked Nya and Katya's combined punches, having to leap back for fear of hurting herself. Venka was the fastest, pouring the most magic into maintaining the spell she used a leaping spinning kick, the first strike catching Seya on the chin, and the second connecting with her chest. As Seya flew back, she began leaping back, avoiding the team, who now were on the offensive.

"Try a taste of your own medicine." Faris smiled. Seya was strong and she had the second most magic of any human he'd ever had to connect minds to, Venka of course was the first. He immediately suspected she used magic to increase her strength and speed, even then to move as consistently as she did require patients and discipline, the tight bandages under her robes were likely to help hold her together over anything else, but given her personality it could be something more risqué. As it was Nya was already quite skilled in strengthening the body, it was a staple of the Wandering Blade, but the others weren't so skilled, so Nya would be the impotence, while Venka would provide some additional power and Katya would cast a concurrent spell to slightly increase their durability to handle this increased strength for a greater amount of time. This technique proved troublesome for even Dusan to take on, there was no way Seya could handle them, was his thought.

Seya leaped back further and faster than they attacked. Barely looking up in time to see Venka send a flying punch her way. Blocking it left her open to a leg strike from Katya, which nearly shattered her shin, Morgan's leg sweep finished the job causing her to yelp in pain. Nya unleashed a flurry of kicks and punches in tandem with Venka, covering Seya in awful bruises before kicking her away. As she flew back, they charged her to deal a finishing blow, and her hair turned white. Just as Seya hit the ground, she all of a sudden was far behind the group. She lifted her leg, watching disinterestedly as the limp thing cracked and snapped as the bone set into place then healed. She turned to the group, sending shiver's up their spines. She was smiling as if in ecstasy. Her facial expression of pure pleasure and bliss made Faris extremely uncomfortable and worried as she lowered her body, extending her hand and index finger, beckoning the group forward. They for the most part charged her. She now dodged them with ease, Faris noticed her dodges were much more wasteful, before when she would only try to side step and get behind them, she made large elaborate acrobatic leaps in the air. He then began to notice that with each leap in the air as she spun one of her hands loosely smacked one of the combatants.

_She's playing with them!_ He thought panicked. They seemed to share the sentiment as the four attacked her with greater levels of ferocity, sparing more power into the spells. Soon their speed and strength almost began to reach the levels of elves, but it was too their detriment, it was too fast for their normal brains to react to, they weren't used to moving so fast, Seya though definitely was.

"She's incredibly strong." Alanna breathed.

"Yes, in fact, she could probably put a scratch on Vanir, of course, he would win." Dusan added.

Eventually One by one, they fell, first was Morgan, then Katya, then Nya, until Venka was left, looking visibly exhausted.

"She used too much magic to keep all of them moving at such unsustainable speeds while healing and maintaining their bodies." Dusan commented, "I don't think my sister and I could have kept that up for so long."

Venka continued to fight, taking huge blows from Seya, who was taking her time breaking down the younger fighter's foundation.

"She's toying with her." Faris began to run towards the fighting stage only to have Alanna stop her. "But she's going to get seriously hurt! It's over!"

"I don't think she's ready…"

Faris turned to see that Venka still had a fierce expression on her face even with the bloody nose Seya had just given her. He cursed angrily, folding his arms to watch the rest of the fight, ready to spring in when it got ugly.

Venka was hurting all over, her lungs were on fire, she had a headache, both from the concentration of keeping the magic going, but from her head pounding from taking those multiple blows. Her arms and legs even while moving so quickly threatened to rip apart every few seconds, and every strike Seya made huge divots into her vast supply of magical energy. She knew she was more powerful magically, but she hadn't been able to land a single blow since Seya's hair turned white. She remembered the times she sparred with Faris, he had by now after training them begun to lag behind them on a physical level. He was no longer first in races and exercises of endurance, even she had overtaken him. That didn't make him a slouch, he always tried harder than everyone else, even when he was comfortably ahead, he had just trained them as hard as he trained, and his body couldn't keep up like theirs could. This illuminated the true nature of his debilitating physique, he had always made comments that he would be stronger if not for it, and she didn't truly understand until seeing how after following his same regimen she had reached this level. Even then he won his fights because he knew his body, and he knew them inside out. It scared her to know that he could anticipate all her moves as if his mind was still connected to hers. And she had resented his ability to switch from an aggressive adaptive style to a more agile, freeform counter-and-retreat style of fighting, like he was two different people, but right now she really wished he had been with them. She had seen him approach and was thankful that Alanna stopped him, she needed to see this through, and it would be insulting to Faris if they who had overtaken him physically couldn't handle one person on their own.

"Are you sure you wish to keep going?" Seya's face was awash in pure ecstasy, shivering in the pleasure of beating down the annoyingly stubborn girl before her, she almost never used this technique, and the energy drain would leave her sluggish, but it was very much worth it to knock down the girl everyone seemed to gush over. Before Venka had come Seya was the special prodigy child, surviving the hurdles her father placed before her to reach this level, Venka deserved none of that, she had done nothing, simply being born with high magic." She spit on Venka's face, but was surprised to see the girl didn't rise to her bait, fighting more conservatively now, trading blow for blow and minimizing any strikes to vital areas. _She still has more magic than I do even now… and my father would call me a monster?_ She began to concentrate energy into her right palm, preparing a strengthening spell, it was an all or nothing fight now.

Venka did her best to hold her temper as she wiped the spit from her face. Faris had taught her to fight smart, and she was determined to express the fruits of her labor. _She's desperate, she's trying to rile me up, she's probably burning through a lot of magic to be moving that fast, I'm at least a dozen times stronger, as long as I wait it out, I can win._

Venka blinked as she looked at the sky. _Wait why am I looking at the sky?_ She barely rolled out of the way as a leg broke through the ground besides her. She was on the floor. _How! _She scrabbled up, paying attention now to see that Seya was moving even faster than before, hitting her with multiple blows before knocking her down. Venka felt the huge dip in her wards, her concentration had lapsed before, she had blacked out mid fight to find herself in that position. As she leaped back Seya charged towards her at the speed of an elf, tackling her to the ground and beginning a vicious pummel. Venka for the most part attempted to block, until she screamed out. "Deloi Moi!" The earth under her shifted forward like she was on a high-speed conveyer belt, causing Seya to stumble off of her. Venka was ready for the next charge, keeping herself from tripping over, but not avoiding the black eye Seya gave her. The next attack broke her right leg, before she could heal it Seya hit her in the face hard enough to make her see stars. Her head exploded in pain as it snapped back, she stubbled, sustaining her weight on her good leg. Seya charged towards her for a knockout punch straight for her face.

"Venka!" Faris screamed.

"_Venka!" Faris screamed. Venka jumped, startled, it had been the fifth day of her learning Kung Fu, she had started to get bored of the basics. "Pay attention." Faris chided her, shaking his head._

"_Come on!" She groaned. "Teach me something cool!"_

"_That's what I've been trying to do, stop gawking at the forest, I know it's cool and all but you have to pay attention."_

_She frowned, Faris had been short-tempered as of late, maybe Nya's insult affected him more than he admitted. She had spoken to Morgan about it and he had promised to broach the topic to Nya, who promised to speak to him tomorrow._

"_Okay, fine, what do I need you to do."_

"_I need you to punch-" Venka found her face on the dirt as Faris countered her punch and pinned her. "Thank you for the enthusiasm, but that was too early on the punch." He let her go and she got up red-faced. "How about you do it slowly so I can show you what I did?"_

_She complied, giving a straight punch, she watched in surprise as his arm got to the outside side of her arm, and corkscrewed around it, like he was wiping snow from a window, moving her arm to the side and taking her off balance, while she was off balance his other arm gently pressed down on her, and she despite her best efforts fell again._

"_Woah! How'd you do that?"_

_Faris smiled, "This is why you needed to build the basics to understand the form and stance, you block it by letting it slide over your forearm, much like a sword or spear, it's easier to bat away the tip than the hilt, then you use your arm in conjunction with your hips to twist it away, grabbing and pulling your opponent forward, if they threw their weight into the punch, which they likely would have, this makes it easier to get them off balance, then simply press down with your opposing elbow to knock them down." He repeated his movements slowly, "Twist the arm so their palm is up, foot in front of theirs." Venka's face heated up as he got close. "Then," He continued, oblivious, "You use your forearm on their triceps, press down as they are imbalanced."_

"_Then?" She asked, facing away from him._

"_Then, make sure your knee is in contact with the back of their leg as they go down, it keeps them from using their strength to get back up, once you do so, they'll likely be too surprised to react to your next move." He let her go._

"_Okay then!" She got up._

"_I'm glad you're excited, alright then I'll punch you slowly so you can get the hang of it…"_

Seya's eyes widened as Venka's hand whipped past her own in a deliberate sweeping motion, then before she could do anything Venka pulled her in and twisted her punch painfully. Before she could process Venka brought her broken leg over hers and her other arm just under her shoulder, pushing her to the floor, she collapsed with Venka on top of her, who took the opportunity to then punch her hard in the face twice before aiming a precise blow to her chin. Seya's eyes glazed over and rolled to the back of her head.

Venka breathed hard over Seya's unmoving body, lowering her head she could hear the older girl still breathing, and she got up slowly. Just before she collapsed Faris was on her, holding her and healing the broken leg.

"Hey…"

He didn't respond, he was tending to her wounds.

"Hey."

Still nothing.

"Hey!" His head snapped up, the tears glistening. "People are watching… You're making a scene." She whispered, grinning.

"To hell with that!" He scowled. "You guys did fantastic." He rubbed the tears away.

The rest of the group could only raise their hands in exhausted comradery. When Venka had to stop supporting their ability they could only last a minute or so longer before collapsing. Nya could last a bit longer but she didn't have the stamina to keep going and sustain Seya's hits. She shook her head in amazement, "man, you're the real hero Venka."

Venka shook her head. "During that last charge she stumbled forward, she hadn't completely fixed up the leg Katya and Morgan broke, and the bruise you left on her forearm was still there. I wouldn't have been able to counter if she hadn't slowed down last minute."

They laughed a bit. The other students watched them with awe, envy, and hatred. Some began whispering to each other. "Hey… they're exhausted, they shouldn't be able to recover anytime soon, let's challenge them for tomorrow!"

Alanna shook her head. "Humans really are odd, some exemplify the worse aspects."

Dusan thought back to the incident with Martha, "Some do good when they can."

They smiled to each other, "And then some are in the middle."

Seya opened her eyes suddenly and leaped up. Her hair began reverting to its natural black coloration. She looked over the exhausted first-years, who flinched at her piercing gazes before she turned her eyes to Venka. She walked over. Faris stood to block her and barely blocked a fist to the side of the heads, stumbling to the side as she turned her attention back to Venka. She bowed, surprising almost everyone watching except Venka and the elves.

"Well, I lost to you four, looks like your boyfriend was right." Seya smiled.

"He's not my boyfriend, yet." Venka replied with an equally fierce smile. They shook hands.

Faris's head swam, but he was ultimately happy that Seya did not attempt to retaliate for her loss.

_Yet!?_ He thought, face heating up.

"Oh?! Then He's still free, anyone capable of turning someone like you into a decent fighter is definitely useful, weak or not."

"Please, like you could entertain him, despite your age you lack the fruits of achievement." Venka added, eyes twinkling fiercely.

"Honey, as you get older you realize that those assets aren't as useful as you may think, people may pick a book for it's pretty cover, but its content is what drives them in."

Katya looked at them confused. "What are you talking about?"

Venka and Seya both looked at Katya bitterly, "blessed women like you should but out of our conversations!"

Morgan and Bartholomew broke into uproarious guffaws, Faris let out a polite but nervous chuckle. As he took bearing of the situation the elves began to approach. "What is going on?" Alanna asked quizzically. "What are these fruits? Have they taken up gardening?"

Nya waived her hand dismissively, "No, they're just being dumb…"


	37. Chapter 37

Lord Jaya sat with his council; 9 heads looked back at him.

"We have to be stricter with the processing of people into the city. If those cultists had been aiming to commit a terrorist attack, they could have slaughtered hundreds before we could stop them."

"What do you propose we do? Register papers?"

He rubbed his eyes, "Perhaps, I will speak to Queen Nasuada on the subject." He looked back at his council. "I know some of you have been voicing concerns over the exploits of the First Year Pearl students."

"I find that they are gathering too much attention and have caught the ire of the majority of the student body unfairly." Lord Jaya turned to his friend.

"Farooq, you never spoke up before on this topic…"

The Surdan grinned. "Come now, you all know I don't care too much about these things, the students fighting out their problems is alright, and I find the penalty a worthy deterrent. But these children have amassed enough power to turn into a sort of gambling prize. Eventually they will tire and lose."

"Well…" Mortimer began, "That's the nature of it, once they lose it should be over."

Farooq shook his head, "I fear it incites a cowardice from the rest of the Pearl students."

"You realize though that we can't make any moves to stop this, that would be preferential treatment, and given the relationships many of them have with us, Nasuada and Trianna would likely not listen to any excuses."

Farooq shook his head, "Something should be done, now though, why are three of our council members missing?"

Lord Jaya laughed. "They are checking on the students in question…."

"You know Katya, you and your friends need to stop overexerting yourselves so often, magic can heal your bodies, but your mind needs time to recuperate."

"Yes mom…" Katya turned away embarrassed as her mother patted her on the bed. The hospital room was much larger than the one Morgan and Faris had been in before.

"Why does everything hurt…" Venka moaned.

"Because you used up too much magic, and because if it didn't, I'd make it hurt." Seya laughed.

"You know you're here with us too." Nya added. She winced as her older sister, Celica, flicked her on the forehead.

"You all are stupid beyond compare, taking on Lord Jaya's daughter? Are you insane?! And worse of all you didn't hang in till the end Nya! What do you think dad will say!?"

"Oh, all of you calm down!" Rakus began. "The most important thing is you are all alive."

"Grandpa…" Morgan began.

"Yes, my sweet grandchild?"

"Please, I am strong enough to eat my own soup."

"Nonsense!" Rakus began indignantly, cooling the soup on the spoon. "Now open the cave for the bat!"

Stifled chuckles could be heard.

"I think though we should address the elephant in the room." Morgan swallowed the last bit of his spoonful, failing to hold his grandpa back from stuffing the next spoonful in.

"Yeah…" Bartholomew, who was enjoying the entire spectacle turned to Faris. "Why did you agree to the mage's duel? You know the vast majority of your team is unable to fight, and I may be a member, but I believe I already stated I don't fight."

The rest of his team turned to look at Faris, who was eating a sandwich while reading on of the books Lord Jaya had procured for him, he looked up at his team. "If I didn't agree to do so, we would have had to forfeit half our gathered energy. It's a really stupid rule if you ask me."

"Unfortunately, it's required to keep teams from banking on their winnings. But why did you agree to do the match in two days? Your team won't have recovered." Sona looked at him, eyebrow raised.

Faris shook his head his hair shaking in front of him. "I've got to cut this a little."

"I like it!" Seya chimed.

"Then I'm definitely cutting it." He sighed, "Anyways, I agreed because they challenged us because they thought you guys would be too weak to fight, which you are. So, either we give them a huge plethora of energy for nothing or we give them an even larger amount of energy and end our winning streak, which would ruin our reputation and destroy our momentum."

"I see, but…"

"But why did I take the worse option? Because if we had instead opted to wait, we would have been seen as weak and cowardly, and they would have bothered us incessantly until we finally slip or give up."

"So, we get it over with now?" Venka asked.

"No, this is because I didn't stop you from fighting. So, I told them I would be the only one they faced." He stopped their uproar with his open palms. "Calm down, if I lose, they only take my magic."

"What if they break you in retaliation? Each of those students have nasty rumors associated with them." Seya replied. "I'd rather not risk that."

"Oh please." Venka grinned. "Faris has this…" She turns to him. "Right?"

Faris smiles and pats his chest confidently. "I have no fucking idea ha-ha…"

His friend's expressions made him begin to chuckle. "Are you insane?" Nya asks angrily.

"Well, if you weren't that brave, I wouldn't have fallen for you darling!" Seya added, winking.

"Anyways if you'll excuse me, I'm going to train. Don't follow me." Faris ignored Seya's quip, taking the books and heading out.

The room was left with silence before Venka cleared her throat. "Well, at least he's not too nervous."

"Shouldn't we help him?" Morgan asked, "Maybe lend our magic stones?"

"Faris made us promise not to give the magic stones to anyone, not even fellow team members to share in between." Katya replied. "We aren't held by the ancient language to do so but it's still important to him.

"He never made me keep that promise." Seya began to gingerly get up. "I'll pump so much magic into him he won't be walking straight. And who knows," She winks at Venka, "Maybe I'll get something in return."

Venka stared daggers at her, "If you want to be on our team you sit back down and recuperate, Faris did this so we could get rest, and probably to leave the attackers with a lesson. So, don't sully his awkward kindness."

Seya groaned, "Fine, but I really am worried about him, and for the sake of those other students he better win."

Faris shook his head to clear it as he entered the slums. It had been over a month since the scramble to procure medicine to help Martha, and enough had been left over to help others who had begun to suffer the beginning strains of it in that area. Luckily the goons hadn't attacked, but they had begun to show up again, so he was heading over there to make his presence known, and maybe calm his nerves.

_They are looking at me now._

The kids had stopped playing and looked at Faris with nervousness and awe, until one blurted out, "Did you bring those cakes!" They groaned when he shook his head, then grinned when he opened his satchel.

"I decided to make something a bit better." The kids began to crowd around him, taking large bowls he handed out, stuffing them to the brim with a very meaty stew, with even larger chunks of meat and vegetables in it. A few smiled as they sunk their teeth into sweet loaves of bread. "Like them? Cool, there's enough for your entire families to make a feast out of it."

"Thanks mister!" One girl smiled sweetly. Faris rubs her head affectionately.

"You are welcome, question, do you guys know where the 'tax collectors are?'" The kids looked at him nervously.

"Where's strong big sister? She was really strong! She can help you beat the baddies mister cook!"

Faris smiled, "I'm just as strong as 'strong big sister' imagine my cooking skills are this." He held his hands apart by about a foot. "My fighting skills are this much!" He made a big show spreading them far. The kids giggled, and after a bit more playing around, he was given directions into an even deeper part of the slums. He eventually found himself in front of a large and dilapidated garrison/ armory/ stable house. The red and blacks and muted greys of Galbatorix were faded from the disrepair, and several parts of the building looked like they had been removed, like places in the destroyed garden that would have likely had statues. Faris looked up, if he were to guess it would be maybe four pm on earth based on the sun's position, so he had a few hours till sunset. "Welp, better head in and say hi."

"Lost little boy?" He turned to see three goons staring at him menacingly. The one in the middle held out a wicked curved dagger, he was an ugly fellow, missing enough top and bottom teeth in a way to give his smile a checkered look, he had a scar going down his face over his lips, and his eyes betrayed the wicked intentions he had. Faris found to his amusement none of the men were even aware that he had connected to their minds.

_I kinda understand what Elva feels when she talks about the ugliness of people._ He quashed his grimace and instead took up a scared look. Taking out a bag he trembled. "I-I have 30 gold; can you help me get home? I'm lost and my parents will be looking for me soon."

The vagabond snatched the coin purse, playing with the jingle and turning towards the other two, who grinned in turn. "Sure, little boy, we can help you. We just need you to stay with us a bit so we can find out where your rich little basta- erm, I mean parents are."

Faris hid his smile as he shook enthusiastically. "O-of course, th-thank y-you sirs!" He gave a nervous smile, to which the thugs merely grinned wider, herding him towards the large building. Before he knew it, he was ferried to a room and pushed over. They began to rush to search the rest of his pack only to collapse in splitting migraines as what felt like thousands of daggers shaped for the sole purpose of inflicting torment drilled into their skulls. Faris calmly walked up, grabbing his coin purse back. "Sorry bloke, borrowed it from a friend." He grinned; "you understand right?" After a bit of time he released his mental strike, two of the men collapsed in exhaustion, one man got up angrily, and fearfully.

"You're a devil child!" He turned to run.

Faris let him run as he calmly walked towards the hidden passage he discovered from tearing into their minds. Opening the door, he looked in to see 3 children, battered and bruised, and clearly starving, they looked up at him fearfully. "I'm here to help," He said gently, letting them out and handing them his emergency jerky and waterskin. As they each took swigs, he began to heal their bruises. He turned back into the room, the foul smell of rotting bodies was starting to fill the air, he closed the door and cleared the smell away with magic, hiding his rage to keep the children comfortable.

"Are you an angel?" The youngest, a girl asked him. He shook his head, chuckling.

"No, but then again it's a matter of perspective, anyways, take as much food as you want, and stay in this room for a while." He turned to the men, then cast invisible shackles on them, draining large amounts of their energy to create the shackles. "They won't be able to bother you, when I come back, I'll get you home." Faris hadn't seen them approach Martha and her son, but they targeted others, it was time to revise his deal. The children nodded, hope in their eyes as they looked at their savior. Faris took out a dagger and handed it to the oldest child, a dirty boy barely younger than him. The child blinked a few times at the weapon, then gripped it tightly. Faris nodded grimly, turning and leaving the room, closing the door and locking it magically to only open if they or he touched it, he placed a tiny quartz into the keyhole, it would last 30 minutes, too much time, but better safe than sorry.

"Stop right there!" He turned casually to see he was surrounded on both sided by 30 men, equipped with various levels of makeshift weaponry. "Uglauw's been busy." He smiled at the alarm on their faces. "Your extorting of children to supply yourselves with this stuff, it's kind of sad. Half of you have families, aren't you worried for them?" He shook his head, when he opened his eyes, the mirth was gone, "It's disgusting!" The men all collapsed as they felt their energy leave them, like they had just run a thousand miles, try as they might none had the energy to get up.

"What… what did you do?!" One asked.

"Well, normally how things go, you guys gang up on one little kid, then squeeze him or her out of all the resources you can get, be it money, resources, labor, or sadistic pleasure." He stabbed one of the men in the hand. He didn't have the energy to scream for more than a second before gasping in exhaustion and pain. "And you hug your son with that same hand? How do you live with yourself?" He turned to the rest of them, "So, I thought, perhaps its best I come here, at first I wanted to kill you all, and it would have been really easy." The men begin to whimper in pain, a few pissed themselves. "Then I realized I derive no pleasure from that, because you're all fucked up because you had a shit life, and all I'm doing is breaking the cycle in a really stupid way, and also I'm unfortunately so much more powerful than an average person that it feels like putting down a rabid dog over killing someone, which, in my opinion, is a terrible way to go about life, and to be honest, I don't think I have the right to kill you when you pose no threat to my person and couldn't ever hurt me unless I chose to be criminally negligent." He smiled, "Then I thought, 'I know! I'll get them arrested.'" He turned to 6 of the men, "unfortunately that would ruin the lives of your children. Horma, Tania is a cute little girl, I hope you enjoyed those fried doughballs I made for her and the rest of the children, she's probably expecting you hope for the meat balls I recently brought." The man looked at him with a mix of guilt and terror, turning his head in shame. Faris kicked his side angrily. "See what I mean? The same people you terrorize are the same people you belong to, removing you will easily lead to them ending up just like you, and a person more comfortable with killing, or weaker than me would just kill them and right off everyone in these slums." He sighed, "I was troubled, so, as if in an epiphany, I decided, I'm going to kick your asses and instill just enough terror in all of you that if you so much as look at another person wrong, you'll all remember me, I know where you all live, and I'll give you a second chance to make things better. The city guards are looking to hire more people to help be on the lookout for dangerous individuals, like who you are now, maybe after cleaning yourselves up you can get respectable jobs that due to lucky circumstance opened up, it'll be harder than the money you make now probably from exploitation, and a few of your will be arrested and end up in jail. And you'll have to deal with the mistrust you created with the rest of the citizens in these slums."

"Why are you butting in?!" One of the collapsed men spoke angrily.

"Well see I didn't want to come in here guns blazing like a big bully, so I pretended to be a lost little kid, ended up being taken here and pushed into a room where they probably planned on robbing me and doing all kinds of terrible and horrible things. So, it's fair game." He stepped on the man's hand. "Also, please stop talking." Faris felt like faltering but he continued on, "I'd be a good man to break one finger and toe for every corpse I found stuffed in that godforsaken room. But there aren't enough fingers and toes to go around, so I'll head in to your main room, where your boss has a little ambush laid out for me, and where he has one of the kids you extorted at knife point, and when I see this in front of me…" He stepped hard, breaking the man's hand. "I'll probably be really angry, and when you get up, I want you to get to that room and see what I do to that sack of waste Uglauw." He turned to the big double doors.

"The big threat is a kid?" The leader tuned to his soldiers, chuckling. "So, how'd you sneak past my men? Where's the real fighter?"

Faris looked around, the floor was mostly dirt with sparse straw matting, over sixty men equipped with weapons of different sorts were aimed at him, in the center of the room sat Uglauw, who despite the name could be described as handsome, with his shoulder length brown hair and brooding brown eyes. His jaw was square and he had the defined cheekbones of a movie star. Faris could tell that he along with the best equipped men where better fed, picking out 25 of them, including Uglauw, he smiled. "Okay, so 26 of these filths I can't let live, dang and I even said I wanted to give you a second chance."

Uglauw laughed, pressing his blade to the child by his side's throat. "I like your bluffing, but even then, you should put your hands up, your companion would do to learn humility, and he should teach you to watch your tongue."

"I came alone," Faris smiled as the man looked at him bemused. The man dropped his dagger as it simultaneously grew hot and began to shock him, the dagger hovered in the air menacingly and he was lifted up as well.

"AH! Men! Get him!" He turned to see the majority of his men attempt to flee, only for the entire lot to collapse on the floor, he turned to look at Faris fearfully, whose face was a mask of hatred.

"Bianca, come here sweetie, I have food for you, and I'll help you find your mom after I take care of this bad man." After a bit of hesitation, the girl came towards him, as she ate, he took care to heal her brandings and whip marks. After she ate her fill, she collapsed exhausted. He covered her eyes as he turned back towards Uglauw, who he muted with magic. He turned towards the collapsed men, "Thank you for the energy, and the impotent anger over not doing anything about this, I could have saved 15 children had I come a month earlier, I'm angry at the school for not taking my reports seriously, and angrier that I didn't sneak out to do this earlier." Twenty-five of the men began to groan in pain, screaming out as they caught on fire. "The funny thing is it takes a while for it to kill you." He turned his attention back to Uglauw, who had soiled himself. "Uglauw, the reason I haven't killed you yet is because you avoided hurting Martha and her son." His eyes opened in recognition as he turned to the three men Faris had threatened earlier. "Unfortunately, my observer showed me that you attacked other people, that's on me for not thinking you would do this to others." He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes, "I hate you, someone like you makes me disgusted to be human. But then children like her," he turned to the girl, eyes sad and tender "they give me hope."

Uglauw's face twisted in pain as his body began to be covered in pinpricks of pain, his limbs began to rot, before they atrophied and fell off, then set on fire, despite the massive trauma his nerves felt as alive and healthy as they normally were, he began choking, unable to breath as if there was some sort of blockage. Tears began to well in his eyes as he underwent this painful torture. His eyes, before vicious and cruel, pleadingly looked toward Faris, pleading to end the torment, or to better yet kill him. Faris smiled.

"This spell will last about 2 days, I've put enough energy to keep it that long, if your men feel charitable, they can finish you off, they'll recover from severe exhaustion in maybe a few hours, they still have the extra calories to burn, pun intended." He turned to the men, "Now, if you are smart, you'll turn your life around, and forget this ever happened, forget me, beg for forgiveness for those you hurt. Or…" His voice lowered to a whisper, but magic amplified it, causing it to feel like he was whispering directly into their minds, "I'll do worse to you than what's happened to him."

The chill night air caused Faris's breath to condensate. He puffed out, as if smoking a cigarette as he thought about what happened. He had taken the children and left the garrison. Anyone seeing it would think they had been playing around and he was carried a tired sibling back home. As he made his way back to the more populated parts of the suburbs, he went to the homes of the children he rescued. Each tearful reunion warmed his heart, but it was a double-edged sword as the parents of the not-so-lucky wailed into the night as he returned trinket or toy or locket of hair. When asked of the thugs, he replied that most were dead, some had escaped. This lie was because a majority of the thugs left hadn't been doing it completely by choice, and only the 26 he killed were ones fully deserving of his wrath. He also did not betray that Uglauw had a wife and daughter, but he had paid the misses a visit, he spoke to her calmly about what her husband does for a living. She denied any knowledge, Faris almost pitied her convincing crocodile tears as she lied to him. He merely told her for the sake of her daughter he wouldn't turn them in, but that if she ended up as twisted as her parents, they would meet a terrible end. As it was, she was doting on her child, sparing her from the evils of the world, he saw that she envisioned marrying her off to a rich and kind husband, so he against his better judgement didn't burn their coffers.

"Fuck people…" He sat on the tree, holding up Uglauw's great sword, it was massive compared to him, maybe almost a foot longer than he was tall. It was a well-crafted weapon, fit for the commander of a Calvary army. Its hilt was adorned with a shining sapphire, and the blade gave off the feeling of nobility, it was a sword that didn't suit its previous owner, but it didn't really suit Faris either, he'd have to grow into it. He kept the memories he gained today close, he tended to be more reckless when he got angry, but he had decided to ignore and overcome the urge to beat the tar out of those men, instead using the most efficient method, draining them of stamina and using magic. He had lost it in front of Uglauw and used more energy than he needed to, a simple breaking of the neck would have sufficed, but he also wanted to leave an impression. "I really hope Alanna and Dusan don't start saying I smell of guilt and hatred or something like that." He sighed as he stared at the clear and shining stars, oblivious of the slaughter that had been completed under his eye.

Getting up he looked around, he was in the northern section of the forest he destroyed to force back the Black Hand, it was starting to regrow thankfully, he had used a lot of the energy he took to give the saplings a jumpstart, and the soil was rich with nutrients from the dead trees. He looked around, thinking about how he was supposed to win in two days.

"_State your business in these forests!"_ He turned in surprise and alarm.

"_Who's there!"_ He replied in the Urgal tongue, it had been years since he last needed to use it, but he had kept practice and was still as fluent as the day he mastered it under Angela.

"_Your eyes and skin tone… Faris?!"_

Faris widened his eyes before smiling, he sheathed the great sword, dropped it to the side, warded his head, and bared his chest and raised his chin, exposing his neck as he bellowed out.

"_Gork! Is that really you!?"_


	38. Chapter 38

The sun began to set

"Have you guys seen Faris?" Venka asked the twins, they shook their heads.

"Are you worried for his safety?" Dusan asked.

"No, no not really, I trust him, it's just he'd normally come back by now."

"Maybe he's training still?" Katya added, she was busy braiding Alanna's hair, Alanna for her part was sitting cross legged, using a mirror to observe Katya's handiwork.

They all nodded. Faris had proven himself to be meticulous and studious, so they had no doubt in their mind he was likely in some way preparing for the upcoming fight. The room he shared with Venka and the twins was full of fairths and paintings and sketches adhered to the wall, mostly his, some belonging to Alanna, a few were Venka's shoddy first attempts. In a corner of the room was a stove, Faris had had that installed in order to cook his many meals and confectionaries, finding it cheaper to use his gold allotment to buy ingredients over partaking in the well-crafted but ultimately bland school meals.

"I hope he's not too stressed out." Morgan sat cross-legged leaning of Faris's bed, taking care not to create too many creases, he was perusing through Faris's fairths, he was enamored with the pictures, he was in the middle of looking at a fairth of a strange looking grey animal with a large elongated nose, 2 white long inverted fangs, and large ears on the side of its head, like flags. The animal was in the midst of walking by a large river, the background was rolling grasslands and a few trees spread about here and there. "Hmmm, Venka, what is this?"

Venka peered over, looking at the animal. "I have no idea; did he make it up?"

Dusan extended his hand to look at the picture, "Hmm, it shouldn't be an imaginary animal, everything looks natural, and it's supposedly extremely difficult to create a fictional depiction due to the amount of concentration required to make a fairth." He handed the picture back. "He has a lot of animals we find unfamiliar."

"Well he did train with a master until he was five." Venka offered.

"Five?!" Nya exclaimed incredulously. She leaned against the wall cross-armed, she was partaking of Faris's extra emergency jerky that he kept in an enchanted icebox, inside was a bowl of dough he left to chill overnight, and some fruits he got from the market a week ago were also in the cooling unit. Faris has by now consigned his fate to have his food scavenged by the voracious predators that were his teenaged friends and took to making sure he had more than was needed for himself at all times. He had the fruits for Alanna and Dusan, so that they wouldn't be left out when everyone else was snacking. Nya continued chewing on the delicious jerky as she looked up, "how much training can someone get in before they turn five?"

Venka shrugs. "I don't think Faris would lie about it, and I don't remember knowing him really or speaking to him often until halfway through my sixth summer."

"You know, he's really mature for a ten-year-old." Morgan said, "I mean, when I was ten, I don't remember being anywhere near as oriented to cleanliness."

"Yeah, and no ten-year-old boy would normally be so oriented to things like cooking and cleaning." Katya began, "Venka, are you sure he's a boy?"

"Don't be dumb," Seya announced, "He's definitely a boy."

"How do you know?" Katya asked jokingly, she paled when Seya merely winked.

Morgan leafed through more fairths, each one filled to the brim with accurate depictions of flora and fauna, and a few of people. "Hey! He's got pictures of us! Venka, Nya, Katya, me, Alanna, Dusan, Bartholomew!"

"What about me?" Seya asked hopefully.

"He's even got Ventus! Everyone's here!"

As Morgan feebly fought off an equally feeble Seya, Venka picked up the fairth of her, it was of her stuffing her face with food, she was about to put it down annoyed when she recognized the platter as the meal given to them after confronting the mages, and after she kissed him. She smiled fondly at the picture.

"Actually, he's got a lot of fairths of Ventus, close ups of the beak, talons, the wings in different poses and stuff, wow here's a really cool one of Ventus and a hawk!" Everyone stopped to see the depiction of Ventus performing an elaborate evasion technique on a hawk that had attempted to hunt him, his enchanted amulet Faris gave him shining in Faris's signature silvery color.

"The attention to light and color give it such a vibrant feeling, like I am looking out a window." Dusan looked on in awe.

"Wow, it's like Ventus is right in front of me huh…" Venka smiled, "Wait, have you guys seen Ventus?"

"Not since yesterday," Alanna spoke, pondering. "I remember Faris making a tiny satchel and putting a few papers in it, tying the satchel to Ventus and sending him off."

"Oh? Where's he going then?"

Ventus was preening himself on a mat of hay, the room he was in smelled faintly of his master. His master was one of the two-legs, the two-legs destroyed his nest and almost killed him. Though this two-leg was different, for one, it had been a bit darker than the two-legs that Ventus avoided, but even then the two-leg had, nest mates that were like the lighter two-legs, they petted and preened him and gave him food, so they weren't territorial rivals. A day ago, the two-leg asked him to take something to the two-leg parents, after reading the note they gave him food, and pet him, he liked them. He didn't like many two-legs, but he owed master his life, and would help him. He observed master's nest, it was different from his birth nest, instead of hay, cut trees made up the floor, and the sides were more cut trees made up the sides and covered the sky. There was a single hole, leading outside, but he remained in, it was warm here, and safe. The owl turned to the mirror in the room, even in the gloom it's powerful eyes could make out the lightly glowing shiny strapped to him. Ever since that day and since master healed him, he got stronger, faster, and smarter, he could avoid and defeat even the most cunning of predators, and now no prey could escape his hunt unless he himself chose not to attack. And the black-wings, the dreaded enemy of his kind, they became his friends, he knew when to avoid their territories, and learned that leaving an offering in their territory made them less wary of him. Just like he could now, they recognized faces, and very few of them bothered him or croaked in his presence. Whenever Ventus accidentally entered the territory of other quiets like him, he outmaneuvered them easily, even the most experienced and biggest could not overpower him, and if he ever did get overpowered master's gift would save him. Eventually, he began to feel a warmth coming from master's gift, a great warmth that somehow kept away the chill of night, the pain of hunger, and the terror a bigger predator could fill him with. Tonight, he was going to be handed more of that white-leaf his master had given him, and he would return back, he had hunted his fill and while the black-wings back in his territory ceased to give him trouble, he tired having to deal with the new ones here, they were relentless until he entered the two-leg-cut-tree-nest that belonged to master's parents. Despite master not having feathers and not being able to use his calls, master's sounds somehow communicated to Ventus exactly what he wanted to say. Some two-legs, like master's nest mates and his parents knew this tongue, but most two-legs did not. When he met the sweet-smelling-sharp-eared-two-legs they spoke to him like that, and he was pleased that they had become nest mates with master.

"Hello Ventus!"

He turned to see the female two-leg that laid Faris, she had happy smile as she scratched him on the forehead. He turned is face to give her a better angle. Unlike master's sire his mother had an affinity with animals, and knew just what would be considered a fitting meal. She placed a note into his satchel.

"A smart bird like you is a blessing Ventus! Be sure to keep an eye of Faris now!" Haya meant it as a joke but the owl couldn't understand such nuances, as it was the ancient language when used to communicate with animals normally wasn't a command, but merely a suggestion that the animals could easily ignore. Ventus didn't ignore Faris when he offered food and promised to not be a predator because he was desperate and close to death anyways. Over time, the enchantment on the amulet changed Ventus on a physical and mental level, slowly providing the tools he needed to survive against cunning predators.

_Happy_, the owl had his first coherent thought, thinking of when Faris first brought him to his nest, after setting the down and giving him a blanket he wished him a good sleep and happiness, he didn't understand what happy meant, but he felt it equate to the feeling of being full, a complete meal, or defeating an interloper in his territory, or one day finding a mate, being with Faris and his fellow nest-mates made Ventus, happy, and he wanted to continue that happiness as long as he could.

"Please when you can, take this note back to my son."

Ventus experimentally hopped about a few times. Someone might joke that it seemed as if the owl wanted to make sure the note wouldn't fall off; they'd be surprised to realize that was correct. After a few more short hops Ventus nuzzled Haya's hand, turned towards the window, and flew off. Like before, the gift from his master would sustain him on his way back, and warn him of incoming predators and help alert him to prey.

_Faris,_ he thought as he flew past the trees of Briarwood Village, _friend._

As she watched him go Haya turned to her husband, "It's nice when we get letters."

He nodded, choosing not to reply over how excited his wife had been to receive the letters, and how he had to console her sobs of joy over their son writing back. He shook his head ruefully. Faris seemed to be having fun, and that was enough for him.

"He better visit soon."

"I'm sure he will honey."

"Oh! I hope he writes before that! I'll need to prepare his favorite meal!"


	39. Chapter 39

"Faris! It is good to see you!" Gork pat Faris heavily on the back. Faris laughed as he kept himself from falling.

"Ditto friend!" There were over 30 Urgals of various ages sitting in a campfire. They were heavily equipped, and a few sported some faded scars. 15 years ago, they would have given any random villager a heart attack. But now after the peace time…

"So, this is Uluthrek's pup?" One Urgal said, ripping the leg off a roasting deer with sheer force and biting into is with a terrifying ferocity.

After peace time it would still be something terrifying. But they weren't attacking him, and they were wearing an interesting headwrap.

"So, what's with the pink bows?" Faris asked innocently.

"Oh these? Lady Nightstalker commanded that if we were to enter the human kingdom peaceably, we wear these, these are apparently a symbol of nonaggression. Is it correct?" Gork looked at Faris.

Faris held back his smile. The bow was quite large and frilly, tied to the top of his horn, it was so out of place to the rest of him that it all came off as a surreal fever dream. "Well, I have no doubt any attackers would freeze up looking at those." Gork smiled at his words, which only made it harder for Faris to keep himself from cracking up. "So, why are you so near the kingdom?"

Gork puffed up his chest in pride. "We were the village representatives for the Great Games!"

Faris recalled his lessons on Urgal language and culture with Angela.

"_The Urgals are an extremely combat oriented race, not just out of an innate bloodlust, but for a need to exert physical dominance over others. An Urgal dam won't glance at a male unless he as defeated at least one opponent. Eventually fighting amongst themselves become too detrimental and an Urgal goes out to hunt down deadly beasts or even men, facing them in order to be seen as worthy. For this reason, Urgals don't have as much time as they could to devote time to cultivating their own lands, which were before only in the worst parts of the spines. This gave a second reason as to their invasion of human settlements, the need to get food and livestock. Nasuada giving them land helped solve the issue of them raiding villages for food, but the second issue was their need to prove themselves in order to propagate. Nasuada then decided to host these great games every 5 years, humans, dwarves, Urgals, and even a few elves would attend, feats of strength, speed, skill and intelligence would be measured between each of them."_

_Faris was scarfing down a bowl of oatmeal as Angela covered the nuances of the great games._

"_But ebrithil?" He asked, "The Urgals still needed to kill an opponent did they not?"_

"_Well normally, but the fanfare and prestige of the occasion attracted Urgals to it, through this, Urgals would not only be judged as strong amongst their peers, but also be judged amongst the best each race had to offer. While Urgals are a good deal stronger than humans on average, some human men have been shown to be swifter of foot, defeating Urgals in foot races. And the many skill-based challenges such as archery, spear throwing, and even wrestling have shown that humans and dwarves are capable of surprise upsets. The first of the games went quite well, and the second is in a few years."_

"You're entering the games Gork? But you're only eight years old."

Gork shakes his head, "True, but I'm not joining the adult competitions, I will be a representative for the junior competition." He pats Faris on the head. "Besides I'm taller than you now Ushnek.

Faris did have to admit Gork resembled a fit and lanky teenager as opposed to the little kid he would have expected.

"Yes, he is almost as fit as I was when I was his age." An older looking Urgal youth smirked.

"Oh, be quiet Zhodar." Another Urgal chuckled.

Faris opened his eyes in alarm, Zhodar looked at him, then harrumphed before turning to the side.

"You defeated me Faris when you were merely half my age, and with that weak human body, you are blessed by Ahno and I did wrong provoking you, it taught me that power isn't everything."

Fairs looked at him surprised. "So, you don't hold a grudge?"

"I merely regret being unable to have a rematch. Why? Would you like to have another go?" Zhodar gave him a fierce grin. The Urgals turned to watch them with interest.

Faris thought to shake his head, then smiled. "Actually, I think I need the practice, I've got an impossible fight in two days."

"Oh?" Gork looked at him with interest, "I noticed your sword, are you a warrior in training?"

Faris shook his head, he began speaking of his time in the capital as a mage-in-training, the altercation between Seya and his friends, and agreeing to take the challenge all on his own. As he explained the rules of the duel to them the urgals grunted. "Basically, I could not in good conscious have my friends fight alongside me when they were already too exhausted. I should have taken better control over Seya's actions. And I knew they were too injured to accept the battle and hope to win, at least not without expending too much energy."

"So, are you saying you are sacrificing yourself?!" Zhodar roared in anger. Faris flinched at his ferocity. "Where's the pup that defied me?!"

"What are you talking about?" Faris yelled, dodging his punch.

"The you back then wouldn't be so cowardly giving up! He'd win, by any means! Even by a way I'd find unfair!"

Faris widened his eyes. "So, you knew?"

"It took him a few years to put it together." An older Urgal cackled, the others merely watched the battle with interest.

"So, they devised trickery to hurt your allies?! Then hurt them back! Destroy them! Make them regret facing you!" Zhodar lifted his fists to crash down of Faris, Faris ducked then yelped as the kull's fist snapped the tree at his back.

"Are you trying to kill me?"

Zhodar backed up and folded his arms. "You beat me before, and you're faster than before, now you have both strength and cunning, when you previously had cunning. So, what, there are more enemies than before?! Never enter battle expecting your loss!"

"Who said I was doing that?!" Faris yelled, punching Zhodar in the face. The kull's face was tougher than before, but so was Faris's fist, the giant of a boy stumbled. Faris clutched his hand. "Geez! Is your face made out of iron or something!?" He winced as he shook his hand in discomfort.

"Hmmm… are you scared Faris?" Zhodar wiped the blood from his face, grinning.

"No, I'm mad." Faris scowled. "These duels are honestly stupid, winning a battle means you can no longer deny the second fight, or you forfeit too much. So, the best thing to do is make them know they can't win. Well, now they think they can win, and they probably can, there's being confident, and being delusional. I already know I've lost!" He held is hand to stop Zhodar from shouting a retort. "Right now, all I want to do is make them regret looking my direction, I'm going to exhaust as much of their reserves as possible, destroy any expensive and intricate looking gear, and break as many bones in as painful a way as possible. And I want to use all the meager power I've amassed for it, so that when I do lose, they'll get diddly squat!" He laughed at Zhodar's smirk.

"So, you already thought along the same lines as I?"

"Well yeah, I'm not stupid, nor am I so cowardly that you of all people need to give me a pep talk."

"You aren't the hornless bastard I took you for all those years ago then Faris." He turned to the other Urgals. "Ushnark." He looked at the oldest of the Urgals present, he had whiskers resembling a Chinese Fu Manchu and thin beard combination. He had a heavily scarred face and body, detailing his exploits.

"_Yes?"_ He chose to speak in the Urgal language.

"_Would you mind if I give him the 'gift' the dwarves gave us?"_

The scarred warrior laughed gruffly, barking some orders to two more who brought a large ornately built case larger than Faris was, it was almost as tall as the Urgal who brought it forward. He handed it to Faris, who marveled that the case wasn't as heavy as it had implied from the wood.

"What is it?" He asked.

"Open it Ushnek." Gork said. Zhodar merely nodded. Faris shrugged, opening it to reveal the most beautiful bow he had ever seen, straight from some master painter's imagination. The curve was gentle, tapering off in spirals at each end, it was extremely polished and beautiful looking, and looked to be a mix of wood, metal, and a third ivory-looking substance.

"Wow…" Faris breathed. "Why are you giving this to me?" He held the bow up irreverently, just looking at it betrayed the power and toil put into it.

"It's made of Urgal horn." Zhodar said simply, shrugging. "It is a combination of the best of dwarven crafting, mixing wood from one of the elven trees and a strong metal gifted by humans, unfortunately whichever little person that made it thought so little of us that they made it using the horns of one of our fallen. We wished to throw it away, but it is well crafted, and our herndall asked that we not insult the dwarves too much. So, our plan was to give it as a gift to someone else."

Faris remembered from Angela's teachings that dwarves often regifted trinkets they didn't find extremely valuable, because of it, sometimes even master-craft swords and armor may pass hands until it rested in the hands of someone who appreciated its true value. Faris tried to string it, finding the process incredibly taxing. Even after that he was barely able to draw it more than a few inches, the fired arrow shot stronger than any he had ever shot before, causing him to shout in shock.

"Geez! That thing's amazing!" He cast a spell to protect it from damage and disrepair of any kind, placing his foot on it and both hands draw the arrow as far as he could, he noted that the bow drew back with expert precision, but each inch took more effort than the inch before, until he was trembling with a fully drawn bow. _It's a good thing I trained my flexibility and balance, _he joked to himself as he raised his leg, aiming the bow with the flat of his foot. He eventually lined up with a tree. Letting go he stumbled from the severe backlash. "That draw weight is no joke…" He murmured as he looked at the aftermath. The arrow veered off the path slightly, smashing through the tree adjacent to his original target, not only did the arrow smash through it, he found that over 50% of the arrow had made it through the other side.

"As you see, even with the implicit insult, they still created an exemplary item." Gork smiled.

"And you don't mind me using it?" Faris asked worriedly.

"You are a disciple of Uluthrek, we do not mind those worthy of our respect partaking in the spoils of our people. We know that the dwarf, while talented, likely never faced our people, and that the dwarves use our horns to make bows not out of necessity or respect for their strength, but as a way to insult us."

Faris looked at his friend with worry. "Are you alright?"

"Nar Garzhvog instructed us that in order to make up for the years of terror we placed on the other races, we had to put our pride on the side. Our values differ from the rest of the races, and we may not like it, but at any point, each of the kingdoms could if they put their mind to it wipe out our peoples." The old Urgal shrugged, "If swallowing my pride allows my pups to grow to adulthood, then it is a small sacrifice."

Faris nodded. Looking at the bow.

"Of course," Zhodar smirked. "You've got to earn it."

Faris looked at them. Grinning. "Of course. So, my manhandling wasn't enough?"

The urgals grinned. "Well, you have to take out ten of them, right?"

Faris laughed. "My god, so I have to beat all ten of you?"

"No, just fight long enough to satisfy Ushnark over there."

The older Urgal grinned. "Knock out 3 of them at least."

"Me knock out three trained warriors?" Faris replied. "That seems easy enough."

"No magic…" The Urgal wagged his index finger.

Faris paled.

…

Venka was napping. Her friends were still awake and talking when they heard a knock on the door.

"Should we go get it?" Morgan asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"If it was Faris, he'd use magic to open the door, and who'd visit a stranger's dorm at night?"

The knocking resumed at a higher pace. Alanna's ear twitched in annoyance. "Why is spoken word barred while knocking is not? Perhaps we should check the door."

The knocking stopped again.

"Well that's alright the-" Nya was cut off as a loud crackling sound was heard, the doorknob flew off as an arrow bolt burst through. They got up.

"What's going on?!" Venka shot up, sleep still in her eyes. "Why are you guys still here?!" She turned to her friends.

The door flew off the hinges, revealing a bloody, bruised, and extremely irate Faris.

His friends looked on in a mix of horror and awe as their injured friend limped in. His clothing ragged, scratches and tears decorated his skin. One eye was swollen shut, the other barely spared his friends a glance. As he walked up to the bed, he saw a sleeping form snuggled under his covers. He moved them gently to see it was Seya. He turned to his friends, who looked away. Turning back, he gave a sharp forward kick, pitching her off his bed. After doing so he set down his massive ornate bow, placed it in its pack, fastened the pack, and placed it alongside the longsword he carried on his back on the floor. He then opened up a knapsack, taking out a bundle of his clothing. He trudged into the shower, slamming the door.

"Huh?! Whuz going on?!" Seya got up. "Why am I on the floor?" She walked around the bed to see the sword and bow, looking at the first-year's attention to the bathing room, which was shut and locked, she turned back to the sword and bow. "My word he had a busy day." She was met with nods of affirmation.

Nya crawled over to the sword. The rest of them crowded behind her as she unsheathed the pretty scabbard to reveal the beautiful blade underneath. She whistled in appreciation. "Where'd he find you…" She wondered out loud.

"Again, why are you all still in our room guys." Venka asked, annoyed now."

"Doctor's orders were to rest and not overexert ourselves, unfortunately we overexerted ourselves on the way here." Katya replied with a bit of impish chuckling. "You wouldn't leave us to suffer, would you?"

"Why's the door broken?!"

"That was Faris, after we…" Morgan looked down sheepishly, "Well we were debating opening the door, and he got impatient."

"Oh?" Venka looked on concerned, Faris was never that impatient. She got worried something happened.

The door to the bath slammed open. Faris was in a simple clean thin tunic and loose-fitting breeches. He had kicked the door open and was busy wiping his hair with a towel. His friends looked at him.

"Hey guys." His black eye was still apparent as he walked over to his bed.

Before they could question him, he raised his hand. "First of all, I'm tired, second of all, why are you here? Third of all, I need to sleep."

"Wait but what happened to your eye?" Morgan asked.

Faris points at the window. His friends turned to see the change in coloration, it was sunrise.

"I misjudged the distance, also, I'm going to bed."


	40. Chapter 40

"Where's the weakling?"

A group of ten mages stood around the group of first years, Venka, Morgan, and Katya had been in the middle of eating their meal, Alanna and Dusan hadn't begun yet to eat their meal. Nya had already scarfed down her meal with military quickness when the mages who made up the challenge team walked up to them."

Nya sighed in annoyance. "What's it matter to you lot? The match isn't till tomorrow Yacob."

The young man in question, Yacob, was a tall boy sporting a clean-shaven face and short straight military crew cut. He wore the trademark white robe and blue trimmings of the Protectors of Life Guild. "Please Nya," He grinned, "Are you scared? Don't worry, unlike the others we'll take that weakling very seriously."

"Are you still upset I didn't join you for your little date?" Nya smirked.

The boy's face reddened as he angrily retorted, "I extended that invitation to all of you, your power would be great in our quest to amass power, other than you, I and my five other ten-man groups have amassed the greatest level of magical power, even that weakling is useful for his analytical skills and martial ability"

"If you find him so useful why do you refer to him as a weakling?" Venka asked angrily.

Yacob smiled, "Unlike you first year's I've had several years to practice and hone my skills as a Pearl-Rank initiate. His magical ability is abysmal for a student at his level supposedly, the higher one's knowledge of the ancient language the more of their own power they can access, I'm sure you understand that well. That boy can already access to all his power, yet it's barely better than someone just starting out, it's not even about individual power, I could excuse that." He holds out his stone, "Let's say he's an 8 and I'm a 16, sure I'm only twice as strong, so he could tire me out, make me use twice as much effort to match his skill, but this stone lets me overtime turn that 16 into a 32, then 48, then 64, and so on. If the two of us were devoting ourselves to fully storing our energy into the stones, then in one year, I'd still have double the energy, but that's not what's going to happen, energy is spent throughout the day, lets imagine you need to give up 4 energy that's devoted to living through that day. Then he can only put in 4 energy, and I can put in 12, that's three times more energy." He turned to Venka.

"We've already beaten groups who've amassed more power than we had." She says angrily, "And unlike you lot, we've never had to resort to all our crystals."

"Well isn't that because you are hundreds of times our strength Venka?" Another mage said bitterly, "Unlike us who spent years amassing the energy and using it with our experience, you can pull off the same things at a leisure, you think you all would be were you were if not for your stupid talent?!" She looked at the mage, surprised at his ferocious glare. He had black hair entangled as if bed head, giving him a wild appearance.

"James is right Venka, I'm sure to you we're all weaklings, but don't you think then that someone like Faris, the antithesis to us, would fare worse?" Yacob looked at them grimly, "Besides, I didn't come here to fight, I just came to appeal to the weakling's common sense, if he surrenders, we'll deign not to take his paltry amassed magic, we just want your subservience."

"To use Venka?" Morgan got up, "That's the height of inelegance sir."

"No, no, we don't want your magic, I'm sure you know what comes at the end of the year."

Katya scowled, "I can't believe someone like you is in my guild."

"Look, we don't hate the weakling, in fact, I respect him for lasting as long as he did, but even if he devoted every ounce of his energy into his crystal every day without having to use any of its or his energy, which is impossible, he'd still be weaker than any of the Pearl-Student's at the beginning of the year." He grinned at everyone's silence. "I also heard he's not taken any of the spoils of victory, so you've shared it amongst yourselves."

"Faris doesn't need it to beat you." Venka scowled.

"That is in all honesty an impossibility silly girl." Another mage quipped. "Besides, it would be easier on you all to join us, who knows what might happen in such a battle, that little energy? He might be overwhelmed before the failsafe activates, and we wouldn't be held liable for his weak self-leading to his death."

It was Morgan who had to hold back Nya and Katya who had to hold back Venka as they ran towards the woman, who hopped behind James in shock.

"So, you are threatening us?" Venka hissed.

"Merely warning you, it was surprising when he agreed to duel us, and foolish of him to duel us alone, unless you wish to intervene."

"Oh?" Seya smirked, "You're just upset and scared."

Yacob twitched. "What are you talking about?"

"You thought you had it all figured out." She stood up and walked up to him, he turned his face angrily. "You thought, 'oh! They are too skilled for our goons to take down, there's no point anymore, but look at that! They exhausted themselves with infighting!'"

"Not to be disrespectful, but that was your fault Seya." Morgan had put down Nya, who had calmed down a bit. They had begun to make a scene, so getting into a real fight would be detrimental.

Seya ignored him as she continued, "So you thought to challenge us, if we said no, you'd gain a boat load of magical power, if we accepted, you had a good chance of winning." She held up two fingers. "One, you win, you get even more magical energy, two, you lose, but we've exhausted ourselves, so another group challenges us as we are even more exhausted, we have the most energy, and you've exhausted your energy beating us, so you'll gain more energy than we gain from you, and thus you get a net positive." She laughed now, "That's a cowardly move from the boy who said he wanted to earn my hand."

Yacob yelled at her angrily. "What does that even matter?! That boy will likely die facing us! Are you all so cold as to leave him to that fate?"

"It's a matter of believing in him I think." Mortimer was swallowing pieces of a meat pie. "I couldn't care less, but I don't think you're taking him as seriously as you say you do."

Yacob turned angrily, "Fine then! His death is on your hands."

"Are you sure you aren't desperate?" Seya grinned, poking him in the back.

"Don't touch me." He replied. James looked at his group then back at Seya and the other First-Years, he stuck his tongue at them before running off.

"So, Faris is going to win, isn't he?" Katya asked worriedly.

"I'll kick his butt if he loses." Seya growls.

"Oh?" Venka smirked, "So you do have emotions other than smug?"

"Oh, be quiet little girl."

"So, where is Faris though?" Katya turned to Venka, "Is he still in bed?"

"I came to check, yeah he is, but he made a bunch more Fairths."

"Oh?" Morgan looked up, interested.

"Maybe we should visit him?" They all grinned. Eager to see what he had made and to press him on what had happened the afternoon and night before.

They made their way past the students and into the Pearl dorms. As they made their way to the room, they noticed the lock had been fixed. Opening it they saw that the room was empty except for a large amount of paper on the floor.

"It looks like he left." Venka walked towards the center of the room to look at the papers.

"What are those?" Alanna asks, curios at Venka's expression.

She hands out the parchments to show her friends. They look in to see several sheets filled with short stories and poems, all with their own illustrations. Each person finds a sheet matching their dispositions.

"I quite like these, it seems Faris made one for each of us?" Morgan looks at his, a fairth of a wizard launching a powerful bolt of lightning. Nya turned hers around to see notes.

"It looks like he left a message?" The others turn their pages and see the exact same notes.

"_Hey guys, Faris here, for fuck's sake can you stop opening my parchments to look at the Fairths, it gets disorganized and you don't even put them back right. I went shopping and got you guys some food my master had taught me had curative properties, it should help you guys out in your recovery. Also, please, check the doorknob. Have a good one._

_P.S.  
You won't see me till tomorrow._

_P.P.S._

_Don't touch my stuff._

_P.P.P.S._

_Seriously, food in the fridge, several fairths I made for you to look at, no touchy the other ones please!_

They all looked up at each other, a little embarrassed.

...

Ventus flew swiftly over the forest, he had only stopped to rest and hunt thrice, and was making good time. His rush back home was in part to reach Faris quickly and in part to return to the safety of the stone nest and no-feathers-two-leg-friends. Ventus dived and banked to the right sharply, dodging the dive of the hawk. It attempted to bank upwards to get an advantage in height again but Ventus went right over it, buffeting the slightly larger bird with his wings, forcing it to land, he pinned it down and let out a chilling scream into its face, standing there for a few seconds. As he stared down the bird, looking into its grey eyes with his own brown, he began to feel a stirring, like he wasn't alone. The sensation alarmed him and he let go of the hawk, which scrabbled away from him before flying off in a panic. Ventus fluttered a bit before getting his bearings and taking off.

Unbeknownst to him the hawk wasn't leaving for another hunt, or returning to a nest, it flew higher and higher, towards a mass in the sky, the mass increased in size until its form was revealed to the hawk. Horns as black as midnight, large expansive wings, and hard scales of glittering reddish brown, each scale seemed a slightly different reddish brown. The dragon was muscular and proud looking, with a thick corded body suited for physical combat. On the crook between the Dragon's neck and shoulders sat a stout man with a short red beard and light brown eyes. He stroked it as he and the dragon flew towards the hawk. After a few moments the hawk flew into a cage securely tied to the saddle. Covering it up the dwarf chanted some words in the ancient language.

"There there Speckle." He placed a cloth over the cage. That combined with his words in the ancient language calmed the bird down and prevented it from being harmed by turbulence.

_I still don't know why you keep that little bird with you, even before you became a rider your kind would live hundreds of times that creature's life._

The dwarf chuckled, shaking his head, "Well, I find Speckle to be an excellent tracker at times. And it pays to have eyes in the sky that no one will suspect."

_Well your 'excellent tracker' was just outmaneuvered by a simple owl and would have died unless you intervened._

The dwarf shook his head as he patted his dragon's neck. "Come now Volund, that wasn't an ordinary owl, it's movements were too sure, it was likely an expert hunter, and it had a purpose. Besides, I don't think he would have killed Speckle."

_And why wouldn't he?_ Volund was confused, as a dragon he could not imagine a hunter as experienced as the owl not finishing off an adversary if it had that enemy in the optimal killing space.

"Speckle wasn't scratched at all, in fact is seems like the owl aimed its claws to pin down Speckle without squeezing it's talons, and… It seemed to recognize my intrusion."

_That's odd, you normally don't get that reaction from simple wild creatures. Only two have ever responded like that…_

"The fanghur and nïdwhal." The dwarf continued, "but the owl simply recoiled from my touch, it didn't attack."

_Would a mouse stand before a wolf?_

He laughed, "True, interestingly enough it is heading towards Ilrea."

_That being said we should continue on our way, wasting time for a hunt, especially a fruitless one, is a taxing endeavor._

"True, but even then, I enjoy being in the air." He grinned as his dragon let out it's coughing chuckling laugh.

_It's been just ten years since the little dwarf I bonded to threatened to throw himself off a cliff due to fear of flying._

"Even dwarves can change, but like stone you have to hit us hard enough."

_Nasuada will be pleased to see us._

"That she will, they probably need all the help they can get down in Surda, and my presence here will likely help with morale. Hopefully Neewah, Jericho, Hophram and Berkfel can handle themselves without us."

_They are all skilled riders and dragons, we can spare time away, though, I envy them. I miss the heat of combat, the enemies poured down like a flood and I could test my might and mettle against them._

"I miss the thrill of battle as well friend, hopefully this year's games won't take too long, we'll see Nasuada tomorrow."

The dragon continued his flight towards Ilrea, slowly overtaking Ventus, who paid the shadow above him no mind, even after it passed him.

Faris walked down the town square, he was a good way away from the slums, he was heading to the industrial district of the city. He looked down on his notes and schematics. "hopefully it will work out and they won't ask too many questions." He walked with a purpose as he began to hear the sounds of blacksmith hammers. A circle of buildings stood in front of him. Each one was its own forge, he walked towards the second to the left. Inside was a middle-aged man with scraggly brown hair and stubble.

"Excuse me sir!" Faris screamed at the top of his lungs. The man looks at him, then scowls.

"I'm not taking apprentices yet, and if you're here for an order get your master to come fetch it himself." He returned to his forge.

Faris yelled again. "I actually came here for an order I put in!"

The man looked at him, after eying the boy up and down he laughed. "Sure you are."

Faris sighed, "gauntlet able to fit between 25 and 50 units through interlocking segments, vaguely cylindrical addition, 43 units in length, 25-unit diameter at base, which is solid and closed off, 18-unit diameter near the entrance, grooved insides in a corkscrew like formation. All of this in a mix of stainless steel, iron, Damascus steel final layer, with gold and silver lining and finishing. Mercury filled within to help prevent overheating. 4 extra miniature cylinders, 7-unit diameters throughout, 40 units in length. 150 measures of Seithr oil flax seed."

The old man looked at the boy, slightly impressed. "So, your master had you memorize all the requirements? That's not even all of them."

"I know. Just above the gauntlet are thin hollow grooves that 7 unit long thick knives one unit long at the base, tapering at the tip. Also, here's the 2,000 gold pieces." He hands the man a large coin bag. After weighing it to his satisfaction he turned back to the child.

"I still don't believe you were the one who brought this in. This design is… it's unlike anything I had seen before. It was so detailed, and so much work had to be put into it."

"I know, you likely needed to use magic to shape the metal when it got to the hardest points right? And discovered doing so also had an odd effect on the metal?"

He looked at the boy in a new light, scratching his beard he asked. "What's your name son?"

Faris smiled, "I'd prefer not to be hounded after. I thought you doubted me?"

The black smith grinned, "Cheeky bastard aren't you, then again only someone bold or insane would ask for that, it's such a ridiculous and heavy contraption I have no idea what it's for."

Faris was handed the item, and nearly buckled over. It was a gauntlet and greaves combination, with trigger activated wolverine like claws, and what appeared to be a miniature cannon on the top, this cannon had 4 smaller barrels attached to the sides. It was as impressive looking as it was impractical. Unless one had magic of course. Faris took 5 quartz stones and inserted them into the shaped grooves along the weapon. The blacksmith stared in awe as Faris was able to fit it in his arm and lift it up and down.

"Hmmm… it feels a little stiff, you have the other supplies I asked for, right?"

"Aye, the 1000 gold you sent earlier helped me get the supplies, but I'm most interested in the 105 'bullets' you ordered, some were hollow, some were solid, and some had been spherical as opposed to some others that were conical."

Faris smiled. "Thanks! Those are extremely important. I can show you what it is for, on the condition that you tell no one. Also…" He takes out another bunch of gold. "I want you to make a second one."

The blacksmith grinned, "I'll get one of the test dummies then…"

The blacksmiths in the area had two rules, don't steal the techniques of others, and don't mess with old man Gurant. The blacksmith was once a member of the Varden, and had been trained by dwarves from childhood, he was a truly skilled man, but ornery as a mother bear with newborns. It took a lot to get his attention, and even more to gain his respect. He had been working on something strange for the past month, it had been making him both frustrated and driven, whatever it was, they knew he had been paid handsomely before he even began, and would be paid even better after. They had wanted to see what it was, but the two rules they lived by, especially the latter one, kept them from coming. That of course didn't stop them when they heard a huge boom and explosion emanating from Gurant's workshop. The blacksmiths who could leave their work rushed out of their forges to see a truly terrifying sight. Gurant was laughing maniacally as in front of him lay a mess of molten destroyed steel.

"Gurant what happened here?" A senior blacksmith spoke fearfully, worried the old man finally went mad.

"That boy is a genius! The spokes to the side extend unto the ground to keep balance, and those magic stones provide extra counterbalance to both the cannon and its payload, keeping it on target! The grooves on the inside help the missile burst through the air at greater speeds! Whoever taught that child, he's a true master, it helped that the boy seemed to understand blacksmithing himself! Is he truly an apprentice? If so, no wonder he brought the schematics to me, his master would claim it." He continued his almost insane mumblings as a blacksmith tapped him gently. He turned quickly, shooing away the rest of the blacksmiths. "Oh, don't bother me! I have to get back to work! He'll be back in a month! I need to perfect the designs!"


	41. Chapter 41

"Make sure your men have a bit of rest, have the mages keep the alarm spell active on the western and southern breaches, I already received message that the dwarves have sent for some of their engineers, they'll reach you by a fortnight."

"We can keep the walls held till then. As for you my queen, make sure you're eating right, you look a little thin."

Nasuada smiled at the wizened Jörmundur who stood on the other side of the magic mirror. He had volunteered to lead the campaign defending against the Golden Horde attack. As it was casualties had been at a minimum due to the combined efforts of every race involved. The people of Alagaesia were reluctant to enter a new war, so right now defense was the name of the game.

"I'll make sure to be as plump as a pillow when you next see me." She replied wryly. "How fares the people of Surda and King Orrin?"

"The people are tense but still hopeful. Orrin tours the walls to keep the men's morale up." He tightens his fist. "The enemy, they do not seem to use magic the way we do, but they are numerous. Too numerous honestly at times."

"Has a means of communication been established?"

Jörmundur shakes his head, "A few of their notable figures speak our language, but somehow their language is beyond our understanding, likely through magical influence, but our magicians have had no headway breaking the code. Even the riders have had trouble. And no enemy has been captured alive, there seems to be a failsafe inside them."

Nasuada looked at his bandages. "I heard reports that a Shade was seen."

Jörmundur scowls. "A large amount of the enemy had gathered to hit the eastern end, our men began to concentrate there, the Shade took us by surprise when it leapt the walls, luckily a team comprised of the riders and a group of magicians defeated it, but…"

"But what?" Nasuada asked, concerned by Jörmundur's hesitation.

"The Shade, it was an elf, different from the elves up north yes, but, an elf all the same."

"Different how?"

"Just, a feeling, for one it was bulky, elves are all slender, and shades don't change that. And, it had horns."

"Are you sure it was elf?"

"It started yelling at the elves, who responded back with shock, they haven't told the rest of us what it was about, but they sent the message to Du Weldenvarden, whatever the matter is, it's important enough that another 100 elves are traveling down to bolster our forces."

Nasuada seemed shocked and contemplative. "This is troubling, how many casualties did the encounter with the shade leave?"

"Surprisingly little, a squadron of men and dwarves were killed when it first leapt up, and it blew the two holes in the walls, but when the team of riders and magicians faced it, they ended up subduing it. One human mage in particular held it back long enough for the riders to reach that part of the wall and face it."

"Who was it?" Nasuada asked.

"Oh, you know who it was." Jörmundur growled. "The idiot seems driven to kill himself fighting the enemy."

Nasuada shook her head, "Elva had already stated he wasn't responsible or even able to have been aware of all the traitors in his guild."

"He still blames himself." Jörmundur sighed, "Torn's best friend was the head of the traitors, I cannot imagine what went through his head when it was discovered he was part of the Black Hand."

"As it is, make sure someone keeps an eye on Torn, and tell him to report to me tomorrow. But make sure your men have rest, the new platoon has arrived so have them take over for now."

Jörmundur gave a salute, and the image cut.

Nasuada rubbed her temples, breathing out a sigh of relief. She had been nursing a terrible headache all morning.

"My Queen! The rider Vulcan and his dragon Volund have been sighted!"

Nasuada hid her scowl when she realized it was a rider. Smiling at the news she got up and prepared to meet their guests, she hated having to parade him around the people, but it helped the morale over the war when someone came to visit, and Vulcan had made himself quite popular with the people due to his artistic use of his magic.

_We have almost reached Ilrea, do you have the words prepared?_

The dwarf sighed, "Come now Volund you know I have it on my mind right now."

_I have found that your little people tend to concentrate more on architecture and geology over the task at hand, unless the task has to do with architecture and geology._

"That was only one time!" Sighing Vulcan turned to Ilrea, the light blue dome stood above, if they kept pace, they would crash into it, splatting like a bird on a window. As they were merely a thousand paces away Vulcan began chanting in the ancient language. A part of the barrier shimmered, allowing them to pass through easily. "Now don't tell you don't miss this place?"

_Well… those coal beds are frightfully comfortable._

The pair soared towards the top of the massive tower in the center of Ilrea, an open loft was at the top, with a large strip of floor perfect for a dragon to land and take off from, likely the most impressive part of the entire place. And entourage had already arrived to meet them, and they landed a few hundred feet away.

The humans watching them hid grins seeing the stout dwarf get off the great dragon, but any traces of a smile were replaced with stunned awe as Vulcan backflipped off his saddle, landing like an acrobat.

"Ladies, gentlemen…" He gave an illustrious bow.

"Vulcan, it is good to see you." Nasuada said, raising an eye at his display.

"Thank you Queen Nasuada." He knelt.

"Please, get up, you and Volund need rest. I already had the butchers slaughter the fattest boar just for you." She turned to the great brown dragon, patting his side.

_Hmmm, the fact you aren't a rider yet is likely because the dragons would find it unfair to hoard you for themselves._

She laughed at his complement as she led them into the castle proper, she loved talking to dragons, they were always so confident in what they said, with no fear of the repercussions of their choices and speech, she wished she didn't have to temper her words and mood all the time. The riders, all being in a status relatively near her level, afforded a level of brevity and informal-ness she could only share with friends and confidants, and to her delight she hadn't met one that she hasn't liked. Returning to the royal hall, she bid her servants leave her as they entered a tent inside the hall, it was the very same one she used to use during the war against Galbatorix, it was where she felt most comfortable. Volund popped his head into the side of the tent, giving Nasuada a massive case of déjà vu

"So, how are things back in Surda?" Vulcan asked, "I've been gone for a week."

Nasuada frowned, "A shade attacked."

Vulcan let out a dwarven oath and Volund growled in agreement.

"Are they alright?"

"Casualties were at a minimum, Torn held back the Shade before Neewah and Hophram came to subdue and kill it alongside some more magic users."

"So, is it correct then that our enemy's magic users seem to all be sorcerers?" Vulcan sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he rubbed his metal ring.

"From what it seems, yes."

"Bah, this whole war reeks something fowl. The enemies we fight, they consist of men, Urgals, and elves, and something else, numerous enemies, they seem almost like dolls the way they fight, but there are thousands of them. And the fact the magicians are sorcerers, I'm surprised we hadn't encountered a shade before now."

"Perhaps they are getting desperate, the only reason you could spare to leave was due to the lull in attacks, they must have tried to set you into a false sense of security. As soon as we are done spreading morale, I'll have some mages teleport you to Surda."

The dwarf bowed his thanks. "I apologize Nasuada, it seems you won't have a rider attending the Great Games this time around, maybe in 5 years then."

"I'm sad you'll miss it, I know you especially enjoyed seeing your brethren compete, though, later today there will be a mages duel."

"Oh?" Vulcan turned, under Nasuada's rule, human magicians went from being known as mediocre to becoming a thriving and powerful force to be reckoned with, while they ultimately lacked the power a dwarf or urgal magic user had on average, they were numerous, and they're training methods and teaching process had produced many mages with abilities comparable to elves in the recent years. Of course, every race has improved in some way, but humans made the greatest leap forward, which is especially noticeable due to the sheer number of them, and due to that, higher number of magic users, even if they had a smaller percentage compared to other races. He was interested in seeing how this year's talent faced each other.

"I heard that some first-year students were admitted into the Pearl-Initiate level, will they be the ones fighting?"

Volund was busy tearing into the prize boar so he ignored their conversation.

Nasuada smiled, "Well, only one of them will be."

"Well that makes sense, you can't expect all of them to band together."

"Actually, they have all banded together, except one. The leader of their group is facing a group of ten pearl-initiates of third- and fourth-year status."

"By his lonesome?" Vulcan asked, confused, "Is it that one student with power greater than an elf's? Even someone that supposedly strong will have trouble."

His face wrinkled in confusion when Nasuada shook her head. "One of my aides, Hanna, explained it to me…"

The dwarf's eyes widened and Volund snorted in amusement. "So, this boy knows he has almost no chance, but is planning on doing as much damage to them as possible to deter future challenges. I'd say he's either brave or stupid, or both."

_That reminds me of someone…_

"Anyways, where is this boy? I'd like to meet him."

"The fight will occur at noon, so we must be on the way quickly. After the battle you may talk to him if you still wish to." Vulcan nodded.

"This should be an interesting matchup." He smirked, turning to Volund. "Alright friend, when you're finished let's head over to the arena."

_Pups fighting isn't my idea of entertainment, but I'll attend if it makes you happy._

Faris stood on the arena floor, the place was still warped from the last battle they had, after Seya had joined their group the arena always ended up worse for ware, he stifled a shudder remembering her punching the ground just inches away from between the legs of a downed opponent, splitting the rocks beneath her. As he stood facing his ten opponents, he somewhat wished he had that power as well.

The leader of the opposition, a young man by the name of Yacob, walked up to him, giving a lazy smirk. "Young Faris, I am honored you decided not to run away. I feared that you'd turn tail and leave my compatriots and I out of a fight, though," he added with a frown, "If you care about your health I'd surrender, and better yet, maybe it's time your team submitted itself to its superiors."

Faris looked at him evenly, "I myself have to apologize, my paltry weakling magic and child self will drain more magic that you'll recoup beating me." He smiled, "And I'll enjoy tearing your teams apart after today."

Yacob bristled at the child's impudence. "Arrogant fool, you think there'll be an after? We've prepared our quickest spells; the recall won't be able to handle the attack and you'll die!" He hissed with venom, spittle flying into Faris's face, he wiped it in disgust.

"Ever heard of say it don't spray it?" He laughed, "Surrender would be embarrassing. Go back to your groupies and sycophants, bastard, you'll find no easy mark here."

Yacob turned to the mirror that had come close and smiled. "Well friend! I'm glad we won't have a grudge over the outcome!"

Faris rolled his eyes.

The announcer stood at a raised podium, but Faris paid no mind.

"This Mages Duel looks like it will be the most interesting one yet! Faris will be facing a group on his lonesome, and they are no pushovers!"

_So, we took care of everything right?_ Damien asked.

_Yup, that was an interesting idea, mixing the stamina and energy potions._ Faris responded.

_Well, we were taught by a witch, it makes no sense we wouldn't brew potions she taught us._

Faris let the announcer drone on as he looked at the faces of each of his opponents, he concentrated on the one with wild black hair and a crazy expression, he was an especially talented second-year pearl initiate, but he was relatively unstable. The boy looked at him, placing his hand across his neck in a slicing motion. Faris chuckled at the display, which inflamed the boy.

_Good, get him mad._

"…And without further ado let the duel begin!"

Faris felt the area around him begin to heat up, cool down, smell and taste of copper, and a whole host of other things as the mages launched their attacks. The area he was in exploded as the mages began their first movement, a wide area attack. He opened his eyes in surprise, they had amassed enough power to blow past his wards and kill him instantly, Yacob really hadn't been kidding. He smiled as his necklace's enchantment activated, the energy he stored in the quartz gemstone halving as he was teleported behind the group. He placed his pack behind a formation of rocks, taking advantage of his opponent's fervor in annihilating the area in front of them to pull up various tools and trinkets. Before him lay several palm sized mirrors, a few bags of purple soldier powder, hempen rope, and some hot peppers and spices. Activating the preinstalled enchantments on the mirrors he launched them out, they began to hover around, he closed his eyes and chanted the second part of the spell, now split into seven different perspective views was himself in third person and his enemies. As he rose his hand to cast his spell, he again marveled at how odd it felt seeing himself making the movement.

"Havr!" (possess) His spell was targeted at James Nordson, the talented but unstable mage, he quickly took his mind, and forced him to cast a spell.

Yacob smiled as they continued their onslaught, he had gathered half the energy the 5 groups under him had gathered, it was the equivalent of an accomplished mage's squadron, no other student could boast having amassed this magical energy, and even that girl Venka would fall before it, he smiled as the massive explosions they created barely touched the massive reserves they had stored.

"Yacob! Help!" His concentration broke as he turned in shock to see James conjuring gigantic fired balls, aimed towards the ground, the boy had been entrusted with a few magic stones, and seemed to have put every ounce of power he and those stones had into the blast as it was hurled into the ground. His face flickered into confusion then fear as the blue energy engulfed him taking him away, but the spell was released. Yacob's last sight before the flames and dust took over was Faris, eyes closed, smiling at him with his middle finger raised up.

"You little-" He closed his eyes as the searing heat and debris took its toll on his wards, the dust cloud surrounding him and his allies did not settle. "It's magic, he's keeping the dust swirling!" He began to feel Faris's mental assault, he recoiled in surprise at the ferocity and mastery, it was like he was facing a teacher. He signaled his allies and they banded together mentally, even then their shaken and nervous state made the fight feel even, and even as it did, Faris mentally projected his thoughts casually while fighting them.

_So, you planned to kill me? Smart, you'd piss off my friends and they'd attack you right away. Then you'd beat them because they still need a month to recover. Unfortunately, I know more spells and words than you do. But I have to say I'm impressed a second year like James would have amassed so much magical power, did you take from your five groups under you? Lol…_

"What does this 'lol' mean?" One mage asked just as a high-pitched hum sounded. He screamed in pain, the group turned to see a metal arrow had blasted through his wards, shattered the gemstone fastened to his gauntlet, and pierced through it and his arm, the offending arrow had a bag tied to it.

"Dumar!" Another mage screamed, running to her injured friend.

"Wait!" Yacob screamed too late as the arrow exploded, launching the two mages up in the air landing heavily as they were teleported out.

"Shit!" Another mage screamed, "Vindr!" (wind)

The dust forcibly cleared, revealing 7 mirrors surrounding them, a quartz crystal was spinning in the center a few feet above them, Yacob spied bits of dust still gathered around him. His head reeled in confusion, the spell piercing arrow was a technique of the wandering blade's, and enchanting objects for various purposes was the focus of the Commerce and Engineering Guild, it wasn't enough to just read about it, one needed it demonstrated, due to the limitations of the language, imagination was key. He turned to see Faris, who had another arrow set on a massive ornate looking longbow.

_Was this what he was hiding?!_ His mind went back to the giant pack Faris had slung on his back. His attention returned to the fight as he and another mage conjured a wall of stone to block the arrow, panicking as it pierced through with ease another mage launched a fire ball at it. Yacob and 4 others ran back as the fire obliterated the arrow, but ignited the bag tied to it, breaking the wards of the offending mage and another mage who reacted too slowly, taking them out of the fight and into the infirmary.

"Shit! Shit! Yacob this wasn't what you said! You said he was skilled but weak! How did he survive our attack!?"

"I teleported dumbass," Faris appeared behind them, leaping from the cloud of dust, he punched the mage, breaking his jaw and knocking him out, before he was teleported away Faris snatched his gemstone, turning it just in time to block and teleport away from the assault from the four remaining enemy mages. Faris rose slowly, the mages eyed him warily, even now they couldn't aim well, a constant pressure from Faris's mental assaults messed with their attacks. Faris charged them, unsheathing a large two-handed longsword. Yacob and the two mages, his highest officers, Marmot and Nico, unsheathed their weapons as they charged him.

Faris raised his eyes in surprise as the mages matched and overwhelmed his skills. "Oh? I thought disciples of the Researchers wouldn't really learn how to fight physically, I never see you at class."

"Unlike you we have private skilled tutors, the best swordsmen in the land taught me." Yacob swiped his blade, aiming to decapitate Faris, Faris ducked, the blade cutting the tips of his shoulder length hair. He barely got his bearings as the next mage stabbed with his spear, Faris raised his arm, letting it slip between his arm and torso, he blocked the mace strike from the last mage with his sword, groaning as the force nearly twisted his arm, even then his blade flew out of his hand. He leapt backwards, teleporting just before they could hold him down with magic.

"Welp this is useless now." He tosses the empty gemstone he had stolen off the mage. "Hey! Do you have any more magic stones I can borrow?" He smiled as Yacob's face twitched.

"Damn you!" The man began to gather all the energy he had in the stones, ignoring the protests from his allies he launched the blast, a gigantic pillar of flame the size of a small tower. "Dodge that bastard!"

Faris took out a ruby. "Vermer drjudgr!" Flames began to erupt from the ruby, spinning around to match pillar of flames, Yacob saw with fear that he began to lose control of his flames.

"How!"

"You're never supposed to cast a spell when you haven't won a mental battle, remember? Or else your opponent can counter it. This spell, I don't want to use it, but I learned it from an enemy I'd rather forget. It's ironic that her flames will save me from yours." He extended his hand, thrusting with the ruby as the torrent of flame leapt across the battlefield like a tornado on its side, spiraling and leaping as it shot towards Yacob's group. Yacob turned to his allies, who nodded, handing him his gems and casting a spell, their magic spent they were teleported out of the arena. Yacob turned towards the flames and grit his teeth. Faris saw the flames impact, he knew it wasn't over and began to prepare himself. He barely got to his pack when a massive force launched him into a wall, he softened his blow, exhausting the reserves from his private crystal. "Shit! And I've been filling that thing up all month!" Even then his back was sore. He looked up to see Yacob, his skin was practically shimmering with the level of magic radiating in him. He leapt towards Faris, who had preemptively moved out of the way as his fist stabbed into the rock wall Faris's head had been in seconds before. Faris yelped, launching a fire back at him.

"No use." The flames were eaten by Yacob's wards. "I don't care about the consequences, you're dead, I can make more magic later." He raised his hands to choke Faris, his magic bolstered mind resisting Faris's mental attacks.

_You can bolster your mind with magic?!_ He thought as he tossed his last unused bag of purple soldier powder.

It beaned Yacob in the face, which surprised Faris. "Brisingr!" He screamed, the bag exploded, launching him back and injuring him severely, he began to heal himself as well as he could, draining the magical energy he stored into the mirrors, wincing as the expensive glass ornaments fell to the ground and as the images they reflected in his mind blacked out.

"You've been a…" Yacob's face twitched as a burning sensation overtook his nose, eyes, and mouth. He began to scream, scrabbling at his face in a panic. "What spell was that?!"

"A mix of two fun things," Faris announced, "Cinnamon and fire bells, fresh from Surda and dried to perfection. All natural, and not something you'd expect to attack you, so bypassing your wards." While Yacob was distracted he punched him in the face, hard enough to break his nose, he ignored the speed his nose healed, roundhouse kicking him in the jaw, he then struck the nerve cluster in Yacob's neck, pinching hard. He continued attacking, striking desperately to inflict enough damage to break the boy's concentration and knock him out. As he continued his onslaught Yacob desperately attempted to target him with his spells, but Faris struck mentally, focusing on one word or another, throwing off Yacob's aim or meaning, further using his magical energy. As Faris raised his fists for a haymaker Yacob opened his red crying eyes, grimacing he spun his left hand at super human speeds, shattering Faris's left arm, Faris screamed in pain, leaping back. He began to scream out in the ancient language, his form shimmering.

_"Sharjalví edtha! Frethya! Eka eddyr dreyma! Eka-"_

"Oh no you don't!" Yacob threw his sword, it stabbed into Faris's chest, pinning him to a rock. Faris coughed blood. Yacob laughed, cleaning his face with magic. He strode towards Faris with confidence. "Look at you… tough, holding on even though you're dead."

Faris coughed more and more blood, splattering it all over the floor. "It's, it's not over."

Yacob laughed, raising his fist to smash into Faris's face, doing so left him alarmed. His fist passed through easily, too easily, like he was hitting mist. He looked around in alarm. "Where in blazes are y-" He was knocked head over heels by a large and fast something, barreling into him and reducing a huge chunk of his wards. He felt a chill he struggled to get up, he took another of these strikes almost immediately after, his gemstone cracked, unable to take the amount of stress being placed on it. Just as he thought it was over an arrow appeared out of nowhere. It was almost as if time stopped as the arrow slowed down, barely touching the gemstone and falling flat, before he could say anything, a second arrow slipped through his now weakened wards, piercing his gemstone, and shattering it. He turned to Faris lying on the rock, who got up as if he had never been speared. He gave a mocking bow. "HOW?!" Yacob screamed, falling down as his body began to take crystal backlash. Faris smiled.

"I'm a good artist." The boy faded away. And appearing before Yacob was the real Faris, clutching his side, he had moved out of the sword's way, but it still cut into him. Yacob's eyes widened as he saw that Faris's had set up a weird contraption. It was a hollow barrel with a closed off end, the open end had been facing him and a black smoke wafted out of the open barrel. Faris folded up the stands, putting the cannon down. He stumbled to Yacob, who scrabbled back in fear. Faris looked at him, then kicked him hard at his side. Yacob reeled in pain, wanting it to end. He recoiled as Faris moved, but paused in surprise as the boy went to his bag and put his things away. He returned, holding a vial of red liquid. Tackling Yacob he forced the boy to drink it. Yacob's mouth burned and his eyes watered as the concoction burned him. He began to fan his face, tears in his eyes.

"Wha! Whad ith dith!" (what! What is this!?) He began crying from the burning pain.

Faris laughed, "I'd say the closest thing to it is jalapeño and ghost pepper sauce."

"I gib up! I gib up!" (I give up! I give up!) Yacob began to panic.

"I'm sorry, the gauntlet must not understand what you mean, it looks like I'll have to knock you out!" Faris gave a sweet smile.

The arena was silent in awe, all except for Seya, who had devolved into fits of laughter.

After Yacob finally disappeared from the Arena, Faris turned to the crowd of students, using the last bit of power he had he amplified his voice with magic.

"I want all of you punks to listen good! You ever mess with my friends you mess with me! And you end up like pepper face over here!"

His rush of victory had him so excited he was making a fool of himself as he made his victory pose. A contorted stance. Hand straight up in a peace sign, and hips dramatically cocked to the side.

The crowd began to clap and cheer as he was announced the winner. But all his friends could do was cover their faces in embarrassment. Seya continued laughing at the entire ordeal.


	42. Chapter 42

"That boy is something."

Lord Jaya turned to his thirteen. He glanced over each of them until his eyes rested on the speaker, Bergan.

"You are normally silent in these meetings Bergan, what has caused you to speak again?" Lord Jaya smiled at Bergan.

"It must be because his precious rising star of a protégé is doing so well!" Celica spoke smirking.

"Oh, like you aren't proud of your little sister's improvement? And who does she have to thank for it." Sona laughed.

"Shut up old woman, your daughter's in the exact same situation."

"Cease." Lord Jaya interrupted the brewing squabble. "We are here because some students have decided to not honor one of our rules."

The mages sobered up. "Yes, the mages led by Yacob, they claim that somehow Faris cheated."

Farooq scoffed, "As long as no one dies there were no rules."

A mage even older than Rakus spoke up, "…True, but the boy's method of fighting was… unorthodox, and if everything is to be believed he didn't have the magical power to defeat them."

"Marquis Verudies?" Lord Jaya questioned, "Do you call to question the legitimacy of his performance?"

The old man chuckled. "Not at all, I am merely curios of the tools he utilized. He's proven a powerful mentalist and a competent melee combatant all at such ripe ages, though he is of course only fighting mere children, talented they may be."

"Of course, we know he's using some tools, which is perfectly within the rules, we just don't know what it is."

"What's the importance of his tools?" Bergan asked with ire, "So he's got a few trinkets? Don't we all?"

"The importance…" Verudies spoke slowly, "is that we are at war with a coalition many times our number and likely many times our strength, the only reason we have not been destroyed is because they don't have the ability to attack us from the sea, or from the mountains, and can only approach through the Narrow lands of the edge of Surda, and even then the wall nearly fell, the enemy's momentum would have taken the nation in a matter of weeks. The fact a boy, talented and skilled, but a boy still, defeated 10 opponents who were his seniors in strength experience and number, whatever he had that helped him, we would do well to learn of it and see if it could be replicated."

The other council members nodded. Farooq turned to Sona, "Did your tool elaborate as to the nature of his tools?"

Sona's smile dropped. "He has a mix of magical and nonmagical tools." She leaned back on her chair. "He deployed mirrors enchanted with draumr kópa (dream stare) and a quartz stone enchanted to raise the dust cloud, those were advanced enchanting techniques, especially the mirrors, as he would have to concentrate to keep his mind connected."

"What? Enchanting objects is a skill taught only to my guild disciples and members, only a few outside can execute it well!" Mortimer grumbled.

"He also utilized arrows, shot from a bone bow that matched dwarven make, but it was built for a large person, larger than he was."

"A dwarven horn bow?!" The mages mumbled amongst themselves. Sona patiently let them finish before continuing.

"He utilized the ward piercing techniques of my guild." Celica smirked. "He's got talent, mix that with that superb bow and he easily broke through the weakened wards, and he aimed for a crystal each time, cutting down their level of power."

"This is all interesting…" Lord Jaya said dryly.

"But we wish to know what he did on the end, what did he do to create that high power spell?"

Sona shook her head. "He cast fire."

"Fire?!" Rakus asked incredulously. "He had that much power available?"

"No, he used a tiny amount of fire, the magic activated near his forearm actually."

"So, he ignited something…" The elderly mage nodded in interest. "Perhaps we should speak to him."

"He dislikes us." Sona smiled, "Even when I speak to my daughter amongst them, he never lowers his guard."

Celica nodded grumpily, "Boys usually like pretty women, so I don't understand why he hates me."

"It probably has to do with you lot insinuating inappropriate relationships in and trying to separate him from Venka."

"Shouldn't that be water under the bridge?"

"Would you forgive someone doing that Celica?"

"I would disembowel the fools and choke them with their own entrails. Then I would…" Celica paused, then hit her palm with her fist in realization. "Ah! I'm surprised he hasn't poisoned me…"

"Not everyone is an insane psychopath Celica."

Lord Jaya cleared his throat. "We will try to curry his favor at a later date, we must now deal with the ten students. They can come in now."

The mages took a more formal seating stance as they turned towards the entrance to their grand chamber. As the doors opened Yacob and the rest of his group entered in. They had apprehensive looks as they bowed before the council.

"You may rise."

As Yacob rose up he stammered. "We receive your guidance Hallowed 13."

Lord Jaya waited for an uncomfortably long amount of time before he spoke again. "I have heard that you do not wish to honor the aftermath of your duel with Faris."

"With all due respect sir, it is in our opinion that he cheated."

"Oh?"

Yacob gulped, "Y-yes sir, his tools, and the magical ability he utilized, someone had to have helped him."

"I see, a compelling argument." Lord Jaya turned to the other student mages. "And you are all in agreement?"

They smiled at his seemingly kind and understanding expression, nodding enthusiastically.

Lord Jaya smiled widely. "Good good! You are all in agreement then! That makes things much easier and simpler, thank you."

The student mages bowed again.

"You are all dismissed."

"Dismissed from this meeting sir?" Yacob asked.

Lord Jaya nodded his head, "And from this school, you have 24 hours to vacate the premises and submit to the public masons registration."

The children looked at him with stunned silence.

"W-what?!"

"You heard me, you are expelled, expunged, terminated, we no longer require you.

Yacob twitched, he kowtowed before the council, prostrating on the floor. "Please reconsider Lord Jaya, give us mercy."

"Oh? But you've made your decision."

"But we believe he used illegitimate means to- "

"There are no illegitimate means, as long as you don't die, and… forgive me if I'm wrong." He glared dangerously. "You struck with enough power to bypass the blue crystal failsafe; you would have killed him."

"We, that was not our intention sir!"

Lord Jaya smiled. "Of course, no student would willingly break our rules? But please, state you didn't plan to kill him in the ancient language." His grin grew wider as the students did not answer.

"Lord Jaya! It was Yacob's plan! He strung us all up in it! I didn't want to do it sir! Please! Don't kick me out!"

Yacob stared stunned and furious with the betrayal. But Lord Jaya merely sighed.

"A touching story, please, would you reiterate it in the ancient language?"

"…"

"I thought not." He tapped his finger against his armrest. "Hmmm…. Attempted murder, and lying to the council, tut tut children, that is truly terrible, but, seeing how desperate you are, I won't forcibly conscript you into the masons."

The children sighed in relief.

"I'll have you all take the Vow of Abstinence." He laughed at their shocked faces. "You have 24 hours before you will be collected and taken to the hall. You are free to make your peace, just know, a third violation would have terrible consequences, feel free to make merry though and enjoy your power while it lasts. You are dismissed."

The children had no choice but to turn and leave, tears visible on their faces. Yacob's face in particular was a mask of extreme rage and hatred as he spotted a Fairth of Faris strategically placed right outside the grand hall.

"Well, they took that well." Rakus stated.

"I'm surprised they didn't make a worse outburst." Lord Jaya said amused. "Actually, I wish they had; I would have enjoyed beating some discipline into him."

"Would they be desperate enough to attack Faris or his compatriots? We have literally wiped away their future prospects, and aren't their families influential in this school and kingdom."

"If they did, if Faris could defeat them before, he should have no trouble, and on the chance, he has troubles. One of us swooping in to save his or his friends life should do much to endear him to us."

"Wouldn't a boy that astute believe something was up?" Celica asked.

"Of course, he would. But his friends wouldn't."

"You mean to tell me I have to put my grandchild in danger Jaya?!"

"Be calm Rakus, we will stop anything from seriously happening."

Lord Jaya waited until the rest of the council filed out before he reflected. As his mind wandered, he recalled just earlier, before he set the meeting up, the encounter with his daughter.

"_You are in a good mood…" He smiled as he looked as his daughter, who practically skipped along._

"_Am I?" She turned confused and bemused._

_Lord Jaya smiled. "Did you find a student to extort? Or a new quarry to hunt?"_

_He looked confused as she shook her head. "Nope."_

"_Nope? Where did that terminology come from?"_

"_Well father, when in Rome…"_

"_Ah, so from Faris and his little friends."_

"_Yup!"_

_Lord Jaya chuckled. "You are getting attached to them."_

"_I do find the thought of killing them in cold blood a bit difficult."_

"_Hmmm… especially that Faris?"_

_He was taken aback when she beamed at him._

"_I think he's marvelously amazing, he always finds some way to surprise me. In fact, just the other day he made a fairth of me and the rest! It was absolutely lovely!"_

"_I see…" Lord Jaya hid his feelings behind his wide smile. Seya pouted at him. "What?"_

"_I know that look father…"_

"_I just think perhaps this passing attraction may be going too far, my little girl shouldn't concern herself with relationships just yet."_

"_Do you hate me papa!?"_

"_What!" Lord Jaya stood back, as if struck. "Of course, not my precious!"_

"_Then don't meddle with my emotions or relationships."_

Lord Jaya leaned forward, brooding. "Little punk-ass thinks he can woo my daughter? Better hope I get there early to save him from those students. I hope he chokes on his blasted Fairths."

"So… did you touch my fairths?"

Faris sat, covered head to toe in bandages as a group of healers attended to his arm. His friends gathered around him, faces ranging from excitement to worry.

"How're you holding up hero?" Morgan asked, smiling at him.

"What's with that name?" He asked, groaning as a healer roughly patted his broken arm.

"The bones were shattered to an extreme degree, healing it too quickly may leave complications, the fact you can feel pain now is a good thing." The head nurse flicked him on the forehead.

"Okay you can leave now mom!" Katya sighed. The nurse turned to her daughter, patting her on the forehead.

"Good job on your win young man."

Once she left Katya groaned. "Why she comes all the time…"

"Maybe she's just excited you're making so many friends!" Nya gushed while holding her fingers to her cheekbones."

"Faris?" Katya turned to Faris, who nodded, handing her his pillow. "Thankyou." She beaned it at Nya, who was caught unawares and fell to the ground.

"Oh, you'll pay for that!" Nya growled, getting up.

"Bring it!" Katya laughed and charged her friend.

"Wait guys!" Faris raised his hands to grab their attention, but they in their fervor ignored him, charging each other in the small room.

Seya sighed but Venka was faster, raising her hands and holding them in the air.

Faris flinched slightly as he gingerly leaned away from Nya's knee and Katya's fist, which had been dangerously close to his face and nether region respectfully. He leaned back on his bed, exhausted.

"Hey, guys, if you want to fight, take it outside." Venka looked at the two girls dangerously.

They looked at her sheepishly before murmuring. "Y-yes ma'am."

Faris was able to recover within the next day due to the nurses' work on him. He had heard that the team he had faced had refused to give the first step of their energy, and that their families had backed them up, he didn't know the aftermath but no one had talked to them in a while. Faris did not care as he walked down the slums, he had visited the families of those effected by the gangs, and checked up on the old gang members he spared, he found that for the most part they turned their lives around. To the few who didn't he gave a painful reminder that he could not be lied to, placated, compromised with, or threatened. As Faris walked along he smiled as he remembered the look on Dustin's face when he came for a visit. Faris walked along until he reached the home of the deceased bandit leader. He knocked on the door, it opened a crack then shut rapidly.

"Get away from me!"

Faris stood there awkwardly for a bit before holding up a basket. "I have cookies…"

He stood there for thirty more minutes, occasionally taking a swig from his water skin.

"…Why are you here." The voice called out, tired.

"I just wanted to check up on you and your daughter."

"How dare you!" The voice was about to rise in anger.

"There where over 25 children's corpses, you heard the guards when they came to the warehouse, don't even fucking start with me."

The voice quieted.

"Look, I'm not here to attack you, or hurt your daughter, I just wanted to see you were alright."

"But why?" The woman opened her door, tears glistening but her face hard.

Faris shrugged. "I killed him, I'm responsible for the lives he was responsible for now because I have the power to help it."

"Aren't you just a boy? Or did murder make you believe you're a man all of a sudden."

"Ma'am, out of respect for the fact your husband somewhat cared about you, and that your daughter is only eight years old, I choose to ignore the insults you hurl my way. And I may be a murderer, but the evils he committed make me look like a saint."

She looked down before glaring at him. "And who made you judge and king!?"

"And who made him judge and king over those children? Over their families?" She could not answer him.

"Mommy?" A voice called from inside.

"Nothing sweety! You should go to your room like mommy says!"

Faris widens his eyes as he sees the girl, she was an albino, with pure white hair and slightly scarlet iris's, her skin was opulent white, like milk. The girl hid behind her mother.

"Hey! You're the angel!"

"Sweety he's definitely not an angel." The woman said.

"No mamma! When I was coming back from school! The carriage was hit by this big booming thing! And then we all fell! But he saved me and my friends! And he waved his hands! And he fixed our booboos! And then he- "

"Saved you?" The woman turned to Faris, fear and confusion.

"I was keeping an eye on you guys for a bit, I wanted to understand some things. A coach ran into the coach your daughter was in, so I had to swoop in and save them."

"You were that state mage?!"

Faris nodded.

"Do you have those cookies!?" The little girl bounced up and down now.

"The ones with stars on them? Yes, I baked those, I'm just waiting to see if your mom will let me in." He turned to the woman, smiling politely. She glowered and let him inside.

"So, how are you."

"We, we are handling. Uglauw had a lot of wealth he had amassed from…"

"I already know." Faris leaned back and sighed. "The house seems a bit emptier."

"I sold some things, to help keeping us along, I've taken up housecleaning while Marlene is taking her classes, I hope to bring her up as a proper lady, not easily taken by any cruel rogues." She massaged her temples as she looked down.

"Look, what do you really want?"

Faris looked at her. "Why don't you believe me?"

"Because you men are all the same, you come in, swinging a sword like some hero, throwing around your weight like you've been anointed with divine authority and-" She was cut off by Faris's odd smile.

"I'm ten! Jesus lady! I'm friggin ten! Like! I don't think I'm biologically capable of doing that shit." He chuckled, "And let's be honest, if a mage really wanted to do something like that, there's very little stopping them, except the law of course." He smiled ominously at the woman, who looked away in worry. "I'm kidding!" He sighed and scratched the back of his head. "Have you ever gardened ma'am?"

The woman shook her head. "My mother was a seamstress, that was my craft, and my father cobbled shoes."

"When I was a child"

"You are a child."

"Err… younger" Faris closed his eyes, and the woman felt like the boy before her had aged a bit, but his appearance was still the same even as he opened his eyes. "I used to garden, my parents were too busy for me, but a house aid tended to a garden, and I loved it. I had a little tomato patch, that I planted, seeded, and raised, day in and day out, it eventually began to grow and ripen. One day, while I was watching the garden, I heard a rustling, a raccoon had snuck into the garden, no sooner had I made this discovery had it struck and destroyed my plant, eating the tomatoes and stalk. Angered, I snuck up on it and struck it until it died. Leaping from behind the hiding place where its babies. I had killed the mother." He smiles sadly. "The next day, I found a half-eaten corpse at the foot of a tree, a fox had gotten to them, without their mother, they had no one to care for them and they died." He covers his face. "Maybe it's arrogant of me to think so, but I killed your husband as easily as I killed that raccoon." He shivered, holding himself, "I have that memory seared in my eyes, but equally prevalent is the children, beaten, choked, burned, starved, and…" He looked away angrily. "Perhaps in his own warped way he sought to take care of his own, that was what I heard in his mind, and his last thoughts were on you two…"

The woman looked at him, tears glistening, and anger apparent on her face. Instead of hurting Faris, it made him smile.

"I'm not a saint, I can't even really call myself a good person, but I'm no devil, no monster."

"Are you trying to justify your actions? My husband committed evils, but you murdered him."

"I'm not justifying my actions, I'm just telling you what I did, and why I did it, you were his wife, so you should know, it wouldn't be fair otherwise."

The woman folds her arms, "And what if I tried to kill you? To claim my vengeance?"

"Your husband attempted to kill me first, so I won't take it sitting down, and even then, if you do kill me." He frowned, "Before I die, I'd force you to reveal the truth of your husband's actions."

The woman felt a chill up her spine as the boy's words turned cold. "You wouldn't dare."

"I'd be a dead man, what's left to lose, and tell me, are the foolish superstitions people have on the mystical properties of albinos still true? Because there are over 30 families who would give no qualms doing every evil to you and your daughter that was committed by your husband and his men."

"Then why did you let some of them live?" She asked, suddenly exhausted, and fearful of what the young man before her would say.

"I only killed the ones who touched the children and held them down."

She cried softly into her hands. "Uglauw… why, how…"

"Ma'am, please don't pretend that you were completely ignorant of him, I'm sure at some point you realized."

She nodded, absentmindedly stroking her daughter's hair, parting it to reveal her face as she slept. "He stopped, paying attention to me, like he was bored. I knew he still loved me but that, that attraction was gone."

Faris sighed, "I want to hate you, but I can't, I took in all of Uglauw's memories, they tell me you're a good mother, and you love your daughter, and that the two of you would die for her happiness and comfort in a heartbeat, I'm not going to ruin a child's life to avenge 30 others, even if I want to. That's why I spared the majority of the men, and that's why I've spared you."

The woman smiled bitterly, "Are you sure you're only ten years old?"

"Well eleven in a few weeks."

"Oh, happy belated birthday then." She chuckled, "What now? Will you take your vengeance later?"

Faris shook his head, "No, what's next is up to you, one of the children died just as I reached them, my magic couldn't save her, so I had to attend to the others who were alive, without letting them know, I took in all her memories, and everything that happened, all in all, she's really similar to Marla over there." He smiles, "They were both cute perky kids who love their parents." The woman's tears flowed again. "I'm going to share her memories with you, from her birth to her too soon death, that's my punishment to you, you will experience it, and I will then separate it enough from you to keep it from destroying you, but you won't ever forget it." The woman looked at him with fear and awe.

"You can do that?"

Faris frowned. "I wish I didn't have to though."

After the lengthy procedure the woman thanked him, despite his best efforts she had been drastically changed by the experience and he had to use magic on several occasions to keep the revelations from destroying her and her daughter, as it was, he was thankful she had had the mental fortitude to shoulder the burden. He had had her swear by the ancient language to do her best to protect her daughter's comforts and happiness and ensure she grows properly, and he had gotten her to promise to protect herself as well, as long as it did not conflict with the protection of her daughter. As it was, she was softer with her approach.

"Do you? Do you have…"

"Uglauw's memories, yes I do, I remember everyone I've killed that I remembered to look into. Even if they decay, I'll preserve them in my memories until my time is up, and before my time ends, I shall commit them all into the written word."

"Can I see them?"

Faris frowned, "Not today, after what you saw, you wouldn't survive a second one."

"Priscilla died peacefully without pain, did you do that?"

Faris nodded, "I had to, I couldn't save her, so I bid her happiness and luck in the next life."

The woman nodded, "Priscilla could have been my daughter, Uglauw's daughter…"

Faris shook his head, "but she wasn't your child, none of them were, that's why you could turn your eyes, but Uglauw wasn't my friend, so in some ways we are in similar positions." He turned to leave.

"Will you visit again?" She asked, hopeful.

"Of course, I can't abandon anyone here."

As Faris cleared the slums he walked until he reached the school grounds, setting down his basket he sighed. "Come out… I'd rather deal with you lot now." He turned to see the ten mages he defeated just a day before, faces ranging from despair to vile hatred. "Hello Yacob how are- "

"_Deyja!"_ He hissed in anger. Faris felt his wards drop slightly as Yacob's spell of instantaneous death clashed then failed.

"Oh…" Faris leapt to the side as a fire ball nearly burned him.

"His wards don't block physical manifestations!"

Faris felt his joints begin to lock as they began to exert magic to bind him down, he pinpointed each mage responsible, using a bit of his magic to bolster his mind the way Yacob had done against him he crashed past their defenses, ignoring his usual gusto. He again barely rolled out of an explosion of ice and got up to tumble out of an oncoming fire ball. The mages attempted to surround him but he was too nimble, keeping them all in front of him, even then they made a wide arc. "Oh please, I can handle you guys."

"There are ten of us, and you are spent on mana are you not?"

"Are you sure about that Yakky?"

Yacob hissed, "Don't play with me weakling! We'll kill you and discover how you cheated, if that power made you capable of defeating us!? Then with it we'll take over this school!"

Faris raised his eyebrows. _Did Jaya provoke them? I didn't know not complying with energy donating was so important._ "Look man I'm sorry I made you blow your load at me, and I'm sorry it was a terrible misfire, but you have to let it go, everyone has their off days."

"What are you talking about!? You made me waste 3 years of hard planning and meticulous effort! I clawed my way to this spot! You could have just lowered your head for one year! Then you would rule this school!"

"Let me ask you… if you lowered your head to everyone who believed they were superior; would you be where you are now?" He shook his head. "I didn't want to fight you, and you could have called it off, as the challenger you had the right to stop the duel, and besides, I didn't kill you right? Raising energy wouldn't be hard."

"We don't have a year anymore fool!" A mage yelled.

_What does that mean?_ Faris thought as he leaped away from a strike. He had mana still, but he couldn't keep up all the longer. _And I left my weapons home, and my crystals, all I had were cookies, and, oh wait!_ He pulled out his emergency jerky and took a huge mouthful, chewing the tough but savory meat and swallowing it noisily.

"Taking a snack break?" One of the mages asked sarcastically. "Or is this your last meal?"

Faris reached into his picnic basket and took out a butter knife and fork, gripping one utensil on each hand he glared at the mages. What he didn't tell his friends was that emergency jerky contained the ingredients for one of Angela's witch brews, the one for improving spell power for a short bit. He couldn't exactly admit that his master was the most wanted mage alive, so he could do little but watch them eat his food and suffer the aftereffects of extreme energetics and a bit of a zany manic rush. He hopped up and down, twirling his utensils before tossing one before any of the mages could react, the fork stabbed the shoulder of one of the brawnier mages, as Faris rushed him he struck down hard on his nerve endings before finishing him off with a strike to the groin. As he grabbed his fork he leaped out of the next impending strike, using the downed man's energy to bolster his own. His fists hung loosely in the air, matching his bouncy martial stance. "I am both not in the mood and very much in the mood to fight, I really would rather resolve this peacefully…" He tossed the butter knife at the mages before it burned his hands, it melted and splattered against their wards uselessly. "That was my favorite butter knife bastards! Okay… I'm going to break you!"


	43. Chapter 43

Faris stared down the 9 remaining Pearl Initiates. "I've got to say, this is not a good look for you guys, I actually prefer your arrogant faces over the serious ones you're giving me now." He leapt in the air to avoid a slice of wind. They launched fire balls at him. "Vrangr!" (awry) He used a spell to redirect one into the other three, though the explosion still blew him back. He got his bearings before landing but his clothing was singed.

"Don't let up!" James yelled as they continued their attacks.

_They're sloppy and desperate_. Faris thought as he avoided their strikes. _But even then, I'm in a tough situation._ He had to rely on his magic to help him avoid the magic attacks, he didn't have the stamina to continue keeping it up for much longer. The mages pulled out various weapons.

Yacob licked his blade. "I remember, you aren't as strong as you let on, your sword skills are still so sloppy, and look at you, weaponless, maybe you should grovel before us."

"No thank you." Faris charged forward. Yacob grinned widely, preparing to cleave his head clean off his neck, two more mages swung their axes above and below. Faris short hopped, and used magic to aim himself in between the swinging blades. His leg swung towards Yacob, stopping short of his face due to the wards."

Yacob grinned, screaming out. "Brisingr!"

Faris raised his hand as the flames engulfed him. "Vindr!" A gust of wind hit them all, blowing the flame before it did too much damage and knocking everyone over. Faris struggled to get up, his skin warped and discolored from all the burns. Faris winced as the mages struggled to get up, he charged one of them, grabbing him and worming his way into the mage's mind. "Slytha!" As the mage fell unconscious, he used his resources to bolster his body and heal himself, it wasn't enough, but it removed his shaking, the mages got up and surrounded him again, launching various magical attacks. "Dammit!" He screamed as he grabbed the unconscious mage and his weapon.

Yacob growled as Faris was engulfed in silver light. He turned as he felt his wards dip again, turning he saw Faris had struck at his leg with a morning star. He raised his hand to kill the boy. Only to have him leap back again. "Dammit, why don't you give up?!"

Faris put down the unconscious mage, "You could have killed him jackass! He's your friend isn't he!?"

"Please, like I need friends, and all our futures are over, so we've resolved ourselves."

The other mages tightened their weapons.

"Fuck this city… why." Faris hefted the morning star. "So basically, I'm the only one not playing for keeps." He tested the weapon's weight, it was heavier than the long sword, but not too bad, and he could tell it did a lot of damage. "I don't like this situation at all, but you were the ones being stupidly unreasonable, I'm not going to backdown."

The mages began to cast their binding spells to seal his movements again. Faris closed his eyes as he felt the invisible cuffs hold him down. "Brisingr!" They screamed, launching fire balls at him.

"Drjugr líf galdr!" (Strong life enhancement)

Yacob narrowed his eyes as the area around Faris exploded. "Vindr!" He launched a short gust of wind to blow away the smoke, revealing nothing.

_Any signs of guards in the area?!_ Faris sounded to Damien, who was extending his mind to search and spread while Faris was the offense and defense.

_Not yet… a few, okay, I got one! He's getting reinforcements, we got to hold on for 2 minutes._ Damien smirked grimly inside.

_Should we run?_ Faris asked.

_We aren't in any shape to run._ Damien groaned.

Faris grinned angrily, his breath hot and condensing in the cold air. "I can only do this for maybe a minute at most now." He growled. The bindings were still there, but he chose instead to overpower them for a short bit. He leapt towards the mages, who flinched, unable to keep up with his speed. He targeted James first, striking him at the legs, it took three blows before his wards failed and he collapsed, Faris immediately felt relief in his left leg, and used it to kick another mage. He blocked a blow from Yacob, breaking the older boy's longsword with the morning star. "vergarí iet verkr!" (kill my pain). The morning star began to glow a bright orange as the mages attempted to heat it enough to force him to let go, Faris smelled his skin burn as he gripped it tightly, and heard his blood boiling at the area, yet he continued to grip, charging the offending mages, smashing his morning star so hard it shattered through two pairs of wards before breaking into the earth, his hand spasmed and let go uselessly. _Ten more seconds, and my right arm's completely useless._ He didn't look at the thing but he could tell it was distracting the mages. _I can use this, I think._ He extended his mind to attack the mages, but miscalculated their actions, they had pooled their energy into Yacob who prepped a larger than average fire ball. The five mages had produced a lot of power, close to what Venka had done to destroy the iron dummy. Of course, that wasn't her full power. _But it's still enough to melt me down, to think they are that strong even when they are so exhausted._ Faris grit his teeth and cut the spell enhancing his body, concentrating on creating a dense amount of air just in front of the mages.

"Die!" Yacob screamed as he launched the fire ball forward, only to see in shock as it expanded rapidly and prematurely exploded.

_I'm still too close!_ Faris was launched back into a wall, he landed on his face and struggled to look up, he had turned off his pain receptors much like had been done with some of Galbatorix's soldiers, and the little bit of feeling his nerves gave off resembled an itching, or tickling sensation. He felt himself chuckling even as his ears rung and he could barely move his body. The mages had taken the brunt of the damage, many of them were covered in terrible burns. He saw in alarm as Yacob and the 4 others got up slowly. Yacob growled angrily as he clutched his face, which had been burned, but grinned when he saw Faris's condition.

"Well, look at you…" He groaned, smiling. "Groveling on the ground like the dog you are."

Faris still chuckling smiled at him. "Nice face Yakky."

"Shut up!" He grabbed a spear and charged Faris, stabbing him in the back. Faris felt something pop and it became hard for him to breath, even then he laughed, coughing out blood with each guffaw. "Shut up! Shut Up!" Yacob screamed, his face becoming twisted in desperation, as he brought the blade down to strike him in the face. Faris glared at him as the blade inched closer. But before it went down and killed him, he saw a flash of feathers and talons, followed by Yacob screaming in anger and pain.

"Huh?" He looked on stunned as Ventus knocked the boy down before flying towards Faris.

_Friend! Faris! Hurt!_ Faris cocked his head as he heard those words.

"Ventus?" He looked at the bird, "Did you just talk to me?"

"Damn boy! Nothing goes right around you! Fine! Brisingr!" A fireball formed in Yacob's hand, "Just roast with your bird!"

"_Ventus!" _Faris yelled in his mind, desperate now, _"Run away!"_ Ventus either didn't understand him or was directly disobeying him because he faced Yacob, who launched the fireball towards Faris. He flew up, aiming to fly through it. Faris opened his eyes, preparing to kill himself to block the fireball, but he was too weak to even reach his magic. "No!" He screamed. The flames engulfed the bird blasting past to burn Faris, as he closed his eyes, instead of the intense heat, he felt nothing, opening it to see that the flames had not reached him, and Ventus was fine.

"Huh?" Yacob was stunned, "did I use too little magic?" He charged another blast of flame, directly at Ventus, as the flames raced towards the bird they folded around and dissipated. Though this time around everyone could see the silver light emanating from the trinket around Ventus's neck. Ventus flew back towards Faris, nuzzling him. Faris looked on his stunned silence, reaching out his mind to connect to his bird.

"_Ventus? Can you understand me?"_

…_Yes…_

"_WHAT?!"_ Faris was confused, he knew Ventus could understand vaguely what he meant with the ancient language, but he didn't think he was that intelligent that he'd be able to communicate back.

_Faris, hurt, need…_ Faris got the impression of a soft warm silver light, his eyes wandered to the necklace he made for Ventus, he had enchanted the quartz to slowly siphon tiny amounts of energy from all the surrounding wildlife, as he entered the crystal his mind reeled at the level of energy inside.

"_How'd you get that much energy?" _He said, flinching as another fire ball harmlessly fizzled out, he turned to look at Yacob, who now gasped in exhaustion. He turned to the other mages.

"Ward piercing lightning! That's what we need!" They began to pool the last bit of their energy. Yacob's eyes narrowed as he saw a silver light begin to engulf Faris. "Don't let them finish!" They launched their spell.

"Vrangr!" only to have it veer off path. Yacob turned, impotent rage on his face as Faris rose from the ground, his owl perched on his arm.

"You really saved me bud." He chuckled, scratching the owl's forehead, Ventus trilled in delight. Faris turned to the mages.

Yacob's face twitched. "Damn you!" He charged forward.

"Jierda." (break) Only to collapse, screaming in pain as his legs gave out, the other mages followed suit as they were pushed down. They'd normally be able to fight against it, but they had exhausted themselves fighting. And, "You are wondering why it feels like your stamina is draining too quickly?" Faris smiled, over the course of the battle he didn't let up his mental assault, he had reached all the way to the center of their minds, and had begun to understand them, which let him siphon their energy to fuel his spell, even as he used the energy Ventus had amassed through the amulet to heal himself and keep himself standing. "I really need to understand healing better." He had stopped his bleeding, and was slowly knitting his bones and muscles back, but it was slow going. He turned his attention back to the still conscious mages, and spread energy, giving enough to wake up the other 7. They awoke in pained gasps. Looking up only to be pressed down by Faris's magic.

"Spa-spare me!" One of them screamed out, crying. "It! Yacob forced us to do this! I don't want to die!"

Faris cocked his head, frowning before speaking again. "Jierda". The girl screamed in pain as her arm broke. Faris sighed, "Anyone else trying to weasel out?" He scratched his head after no one answered.

"I see I did not need to come to help you." Faris snapped his head to see Lord Jaya emerge from the darkness, an entourage of mages and knights followed behind him, they were all on horseback.

"I see you could not be content to enjoy your magic safely." His eyes flashed as it turned to each of the collapsed Pearl Initiates, he turned to Faris and nodded to a pair of mages, who rode over to him. Ventus hissed at them but Faris nodded his head, allowing them to begin to heal him. His face showed evident relief. "Yacob, you and your friends have violated our rules for the last time." He looked at them, crossing his arm.

A group of mages broke off from his group. "Lord Jaya! Please, have mercy! They are merely foolish children!" Lord Jaya cocked his head at the mages. "Lord Rembrant, you wish to save your son's life? But you know the rules." The man bows his head, "Please…" Lord Jaya laughed, "Just earlier today you claimed you would steal my place and take over the council, now that you've seen your son's actual crimes, you have no leg to stand on.

"F-father…" Yacob stammered, wining in pain.

"My son! Why! Why would you do such a thing…"

Faris closed his eyes. He knew why.

_A twelve-year old Yacob ran with his friends, enjoying himself and having fun, after that day, he returned home, to an irate father._

"_What do you think you are doing associating with that drivel!?'_

"_But father! They are my friends!" He screamed as his father struck him._

"_You disgust me! My son shouldn't associate with scum like that! You have talent! Magical ability! I will rule this school one day! And you must take over after me! My son should be strong!"_

_Yacob did not answer his father, this was not the first conversation with his father, and it wouldn't be the last._

"_You leave me no choice son." He turned to his attendant, "Those children's parents, they work for my company, don't they?!" After the man nodded, he smiled grimly. "Yacob, if you associate with them again, their parents will experience hardship."_

_Yacob felt nothing as his father spoke his ultimatum, he couldn't let himself feel anything as he trembled, lowering his head. "Yes father, I shouldn't associate with trash."_

"_Good! You are learning!" Yacob's father smiled, and Yacob smiled back, before covering his face, holding himself back from screaming as his father kicked him viciously, "I expect as such from my son."_

Lord Jaya looked at them, shaking his head. "Your son and is associates have broken several of our rules. So, they face execution." The man lowered his head. "Or…" Lord Jaya smiled, "If you wish to share in his punishment, I'll punish all of you together, and you can all accept the Vow of Abstinence like a family."

"That is too much!" The man cried out.

"Then you can stand down and your son faces the execution he truly deserves."

Faris shook his head and raised his hand. "Can I intervene on their behalf?"

"Oh?" Lord Jaya turned to Faris. The pearl initiates raised their heads.

"I'll feel bad if they die over me, so can you let them off a bit? I'd rather end it at this, I did beat them after all, and I'm alive."

"They have tried to kill you; I cannot let that go unpunished." Lord Jaya sighed, "But if you appeal on their behalf, perhaps I can let them off with a simple Vow of Abstinence."

"What even is this Vow of Abstinence?"

"We force them to swear by the ancient language that they can never use magic again, and curse them, if they somehow find a way to break this vow, their heart stops and they die."

Faris gulped. "Harsh…"

"Harsh, but fair. They did wrong by attempting to kill in a mage's duel, then by refusing to honor the contract of a mage's duel, then they assaulted a student outside a mage's duel, then tried to kill the student."

"Hmmm, the person they committed the crimes against were me correct?"

Lord Jaya nodded. "But then, even if you forgive them, they still must face punishment."

"What if this was actually a training session?"

"What?" Everyone turned to Faris.

"Yeah, we were training, I told them not to hold back, we got a little too into it. That's why I didn't demand the magical energy from them, and why they felt they should refuse."

"Really? But they stated you cheated."

"Did they state that in the ancient language?"

Lord Jaya chuckled, "Semantics, but basically, you are stating they are your subordinates, and you were training with them, thus, they never actually tried killing you? And this was a simple training session." He turned to the mages. "Is this true?"

The Pearl students all nodded except for Yacob, who glared at Faris angrily. His father pushed his head down. "This is true yes! Right son!?"

Faris connected his mind to Yacob.

_Yo!_

_Why are you doing this!? What do you want?!_

_Well, I kinda want you to stop attacking me, and accept your loss fair and square, I mean, you should have just approached me if you didn't want to give me your magic, I would have said ok._

_Lies!_ Yacob's face widened as Faris repeated himself in the ancient language. _Why are you saying this!? Is our energy not enough for you?!_

_You're a cheery guy you know? I don't care to gain your energy because I've been training to increase my own abilities, I'd rather not become complacent like you lot have become._

_How dare you! I- _Yacob's face paled as Faris brought down the full force of his mental capacity.

_I really, really despise you and your mage compatriots, and what you did now has not endeared me in the slightest. The only reason I've not killed you is because none of you are worth me bloodying my hands on your corpses. That and I don't want my friends to suffer. I'm saving you right now because I'd rather have you as allies than dead._

_And what makes you think I'll help you?!_ Yacob showed bravado, though Faris could still feel the fear.

_Because otherwise you'll die, or lose your ability to use magic, I mean that's why you attacked me right? You wanted to vent before you died, and you failed, and you almost killed Ventus. If you surrender now, I'll leave it at this._

_Or?_

_Or I will lose my patience. And I will annihilate your entire family line, and make you watch. I am tired, and you do little to make me think to spare the effort of kindness. _Faris's face was inscrutable, and he relayed the message so neutrally Yacob couldn't tell whether he spoke the truth.

Yacob looked up, then lowered his eyes. "Yes, Faris is our leader, after the mage's duel, we subordinated ourselves to him. Even then my pride prevented me from revealing that, we came to him for help, and to help us calm down he suggested we duel."

"Even when you stabbed him multiple times?" Lord Jaya raised his eyebrow.

"Yes. I wanted to test a spell I was working on to slow down bleeding." Faris chuckled at Jaya's bemused expression.

"That is still a tall order, I cannot truly believe that."

"Alright, what do you want?"

"Oh?" Lord Jaya grinned. "Are you saying that I should do this as a favor to you?"

Faris sighed.

"Then their only crime was lying to the council." He turned to the Pearl Initiates. "Alright then, take them to the infirmary, 1-week suspension."

As they were escorted away the man who was Yacob's father walked up to him.

"Thank you so much for saving my son's life!" He continued to shake Faris's hand while the procession left, once they were out of ear shot the man relaxed, and his face took a crueler and calmer expression. "That idiot still wears his emotions on his sleeve, and to think he railed that you were such a weakling. Tell me?" He grinned at Faris, the greed evident on his face, "What is the secret to your power? And perhaps the girl's?" Faris smiled at the old man, whose face twitched as he faced a mental assault unlike any he had ever felt, it bashed and twisted against him, striking hard from multiple sides until he was forced into a tiny nub of a center, and even then, it continued to squeeze against him, until his defenses were battered away and he collapsed.

"Rembrant was it?" The man looked into Faris's eyes; his pained Face reflected off Faris's blue irises. "Don't touch me again, don't approach me, don't look at me, don't even think about me, the same goes to my friends. Am I clear?" The man nodded fearfully. Faris cocked his head and laughed. "Are you sure you wanted to become the leader of the thirteen? Your son is stronger than you." The man opened his mouth to say something before doubling over, clutching his head. "I didn't say you could speak bastard! I've had a long day, and your son and his little friends did quite a number on me, I saved them out of charity, and nothing else, I don't want your sympathy, gratefulness, or kindness, I wish to avoid all of this stupid political bull shit you all try to foist upon me." Faris released the man from his mental hold.

"Y-you, h-how dare you!" Rembrant looked at Faris fearfully. As the boy turned to leave, he muttered. "I'll get you for this insult boy…"

"Ah I almost forgot." Faris turned to the old man, smiling. He walked back over to him. And removed the man's ruby ring.

"What! How dare!" He was gagged by Faris's magic.

"Say something again, and I'll go tell Lord Jaya to revoke this leniency." The man could only stare at the boy angrily, before sighing. Faris ungagged him.

"You already exert your power over others arrogantly, do you see yourself as a god, unreproachable?"

Faris shook his head. "I just have an extreme hatred for those who treat others cruelly, I'm fair to the fair, and cruel to the cruel, and if I'm feeling pity, I'll even be fair to the cruel." He inspected the ring. "Consider the energy in this ring as my received payment for saving your son's life, and sparing yours. Don't forget, never come to me again." He let go of the old man.

"Damn you!" He raised his fist to cast a spell, only to stare at the mangled mess it had become. He tried to scream in pain, only to see no sound came out. Faris walked back to him, face blank, as he broke the man's other limbs, then healed him, then broke his limbs again, repeating this cycle until Rembrant lost conciousness. Faris simply rummaged through his belongings removing any magical tools he found, before dusting the man off and sitting him at the side of the wall, healing his wounds completely, he left a note on the man's chest, addressed for his eyes only though an enchantment.

_A little harsh…_ Damien sounded.

_Is that a complaint?_

_Nope, not at all, just, a little wasteful of magic, could have just punched him out._

_Wouldn't have been as fun._ Faris smiled.

"Well, that takes care of that." Faris scratched Ventus's head. The owl was a bit confused that his master had not dispatched of the predators, he was full of energy, unless he wished to preserve it, much like he had wanted to against that hawk. Faris walked back to his dorm. "hey guys how are you-"

His friends looked at him in a bit of panic, like children caught with their hands in candy jars.

"Why are you TOUCHING MY FAIRTHS!?"


	44. Chapter 44

"Who do you think they are?" Morgan began, looking at Faris's most recent Fairth.

"I don't know, certainly Faris would have told us?" Alanna spoke.

"But they look real! They aren't like the ones with odd colorations and stylized forms."

"I think I'd remember stories of a man wearing such foreboding armor."

The image they were pouring over was a large tapestry featuring two men locked in a deadly duel, the first man was in a black tunic and breaches, he had blond hair, blue eyes, and fair skin. He defended himself against a taller man in foreboding shiny black armor, with a flowing black cape. The taller man's helmet resembled a skull. The armor looked not like any metal armor they have ever seen; it was too glossy.

"The oddest thing is their swords." Katya stated.

"Perhaps they set the blades on fire?" Nya suggested.

"Using rapiers then?"

The weapons in question were even straight blades of iridescent light, the boy with blond hair's blade was a bright green, the armored man's blade was a deep blood red. Casting him in a sinister light.

"Can you make false Fairths?" Venka turned to Dusan.

"Well, yes, but it's very difficult due to the limitations of the ancient language." Dusan sighed, "That's really amazing though."

They heard the door open, to see Faris walk inside. He looked at them for a bit. "You guys are wearing the gloves I gave you right? Also, don't you have lives outside this room?"

Nya showed her white satin gloves before speaking, "All there is to do is study and train, if you think we're bad students used to sneak out to the pubs and brothels."

"Brothels?" Faris raised an eyebrow. "And is that allowed?"

"Why not? There's little chance a smart mage would catch any of those diseases, and even then, only a few do that, others devote time to hobbies, like gardening, cooking…" Katya began trailing off several different pass times off.

"Alright I get it." Faris sighed, "So, you guys like the Fairth?"

"It's really interesting actually." Seya looked at the two men in the duel. "Who are they?"

"It's a long story, it would take me a long time to explain it, and it takes place in a very far place."

"We noticed some paintings, you are really good with your Fairths, I'm surprised you'd paint at all." Morgan took a sip of his waterskin, careful to make sure it didn't spill or splash anywhere. "And even then, the paintings are pretty decent."

"Thank you I guess?" Faris said, chuckling. "Welp." He closed his eyes. The past week had been uneventful after the encounter with Yacob and his crew, his friends had found out, through Nya, as her sister Celica blurted it out. Hey had confronted Faris and berated him for fighting alone. Venka was the angriest over the situation, Faris ended up teaching them the teleportation spell, and found to his chagrin that they each could manage it at least twice, except for Venka, who after the 12th teleportation Faris exhaustedly told her to calm down a bit. The real reason for the uneventfulness though was the multiple attacks and assassination attempts at his person, he had only recently found out that they had been hired by Rembrant to attack him, and a combined effort of Nya, Seya, and Morgan prevented that from occurring and ousted one of Rembrant's retainers as the one who ordered the strike. While the retainer argued he was solely responsible fingers still pointed to Rembrant and he lost a lot of political power as a result. One could almost feel sorry for the guy. Faris didn't care too much either way. Though he had to the man's surprise vouched on his behalf.

He turned to his friends, they had all progressed in their martial training to the point he could safely believe they could be considered first degree black belt students, after doing so he handed them booklets he made, utilizing the magic of Fairths to print the words and images. He sold to them that these "sacred manuscripts" were where he learned of the martial arts, and they were accurate enough that his friends didn't question him about how he learned. Another thing that happened was his place in the physical activities class lowered again. More students had begun to train in earnest, their naturally larger and healthier bodies overtook his own, Faris found this extremely frustrating, though even now he could still beat most students in sparring matches, but that was just due to his many more angles of approach due to the sheer number of skills he had accrued both from his own personal training and memories, and from the experiences he gleaned from the minds of his enemies, both fellow mages and non-mages alike. Until he got older and got rid of that stamina issue that was still a problem he'd have to face.

The twins were playing with Ventus again, Faris's enchantments had inadvertently given Ventus sapience at almost the level of a human, and so he was very good at learning tricks, getting him to complete those tricks though required work, so far, the twins were best at it, followed by Faris, then Venka, all the way down his list of friends till Seya, who the bird didn't like very much at all. Faris didn't completely blame him. Faris smiled at the sight of Ventus picking up the charcoal pencil and scribbling on a sheet of paper, which delighted the twins quite a bit, elvish laughter was infectious. They had only a few more months before the school year ended and the twins had to return home, he wondered who had taken the sabbatical to Du Weldenvarden, thinking they must be lucky. He yawned, suddenly really tired. He turned to his bed and went to sleep.

_Damien looked around confused, his clothes were the ones he wore before being hit by a car, only ragged and torn. "Why am I here? I thought? Was it all a dream?"_

"_A bastard like you deserves no dreams." He turned to see a woman, bleeding from the ears and nose, an odd smile on her face, her clothing and hair were burning, like each fiber was finely woven fire struggling to free itself from some supernatural binding._

"_Anya…" He said, backing up a bit._

"_Tell me boy, did it feel good? Killing me? Getting your revenge? I'm sure it did…"_

"_No! No, it didn't! It doesn't feel good!" He yelled, covering his ears as she let out a splitting laugh._

"_But you didn't hesitate, didn't you feel my fear? Didn't you let me realize?" She moved closer, "but you made a mistake, you made me part of you."_

"_Shut up!" Damien turned and struck her, his fist felt like it collided with a hot mirror as she shattered like glass, burning and cutting his hand. He breathed in a panicked way as the glass reformed back into her, now embracing him. _

"_I should have seen how strong you would be, I always suspected you knew magic, to think you'd be such a talented butcher at such a young age."_

"_I'm not like you! I don't kill innocent people!" Damien pushed her away._

"_Oh? So, you have no qualms killing those condemned by society." Damien fell, tripped by something at his feet, he looked to see three burning skeletons. They were planted into the ground, struggling but unable to pull themselves out, growing from the ashes they dropped were purple flowers that sparked several times._

"_Why!?" They screamed. Faris tried to back away but they grabbed unto him, as they did, he began to experience their lives before becoming members of the black hand then Scarlet Heart, none of them had pretty stories, ranging from kidnapping to extortion and slavery, he shut his eyes, trying to drown them out. But more burning skeletons began to swarm him._

_Children living in poverty, barely eking out lives, mouths to feed, families lost by plague, desperate pleas to survive no matter what, the most powerful image was a man leading his wife and their newborn albino child out of a village, fighting off what had been previously considered as neighbor and friend, and having to stab his own sister, who had intended to sacrifice the child. As he saw the woman get stabbed, he felt a similar tearing sensation in his chest, as a scarred skeleton with mangled bones stabbed Uglauw's longsword into him. Their goals and aspirations, hopes and loves and fears reverberated in his mind, again and again and again and again, threatening to overtake and destroy him. There were times were he forgot who he was, Damien became Zander, black hand mage, youngest of three, promised the healing of his mother in exchange for his service, then he became Claud, a man broken by others when he was a child himself, and took great pleasure in doing the same to those now in a sick and twisted revenge against the world, each life and vision threatened to take over, to try and destroy him and whatever innocence he still thought he had. Even then Damien fought to retake his identity, pushing against their memories, railing against their hurt with his own hurt, and with his own satisfactions._

"_I'm responsible for your deaths! But I won't be taken over by you! I'll learn from all the mistakes those who fell to me made!" He struggled to pull himself from the twisted chain of bones that had threatened to bury him within his own nightmares, inching out bit by bit._

"_A very noble cause young man." Anya smiled at him, laughing as he struggled. "But you lack training." She reappeared as Angela, but Faris knew she was fake._

"_Shut up."_

"_Oh?" This time as Elva, "Aren't you especially brave. I thought for certain she'd break you; she almost did the last time you had nightmares."_

"_We've done this same thing over and over, whenever I'm weak, this happens." Damien said, sighing, ignoring Anya's attempts to break him._

_She frowned, this time reforming into Bergan, "Every time you are weak yes, but it's also your foolish choice to carry all these burdens, it's one thing to take everything they know, but you take their entire identity into yourself, I'm surprised you remember your date of birth." Anya stares at him now, smiling, "Or are you just trying to be a big hero?"_

"_You can't trick me you know." Damien raised his fist, only for more boney fingers to wrap around and attempt to force him down._

"_God you are insufferable, you're too softhearted and every time you kill someone or even just that fight against the boy and his friends, you're haunted by it. Despite that you don't despair enough for us to take over, where does this optimism come from?" She was now in the form of Seya, "You died in your old world, a boy beholden and shaped to be his parent's tool." Nya tapped his arms, "And in this new world where you attempt to forge your own path, you're weaker than your friends now on a physical level." Morgan sighed, shaking his head, "And who's to say you won't lose out magically? They're all talented, and you've been teaching them, they quickly learn, sure you have a few years head start, so what, soon you'll be obsolete."_

"_I don't care!" Damien roared in anger, the force of his emotions blew back the bones and he charged Anya, who had been forced back into her normal form. He almost struck her, only to be blocked again, the chorus of pain and anger even greater than before, suffocating even his heightened level of fury._

"_Wow…" Anya now took the form of Alanna, giggling like her, Faris merely got angrier despite the beauty of the elven girl's laugh. "Did I touch a nerve?" She pondered now, "Ah I've got it!" His mother's face smiled at him so tenderly that if it wasn't for Anya's venomous voice, he would have broken down. "You think your experiences in your world set you apart and make you special, and all the little trinkets you have planned will make you big and important right?" She laughed. Now as Uglauw's wife, Yura, "That's why you play hero and judge right? You're so much more important than these guys and that of course your 'advanced mind' can handle all of us." Faris turns away from Marla._

"_Stop changing forms Anya, this doesn't help whatever case you are bringing up." He coughed violently as Anya struck him in the chest, hard, this false reality felt real to him as it felt like his ribs were close to shattering. Anya then took the time to spider her and over his bruised chest, taking delight in the pain she caused him._

"_The case I bring up is that you were stupid enough to take our entire identities, we might as well be alive, fueled by whatever the soul is. And so, we'll keep haunting you like this until you fall." She sighs, and walks behind Damien, who struggles to turn around. "Think about it, you may be stronger than me now, but you'll eventually kill one too many, your guilt in that action is what causes you to take in all of their identity, in your attempt to immortalize their life." She spits on the ground, "Over half these men and women aren't trash worth remembering."_

"_And what about you?!" He asked angrily, "Do you think that too?"_

"_Of course, I never held myself highly Faris, not like you do yourself, or that girl you love so much." She walked around to the other side, now as Venka, only in a beautiful red dress, Faris despite himself felt the world slow down around him. She laughed, "You really do care about her."_

"_Don't talk in her voice!" He hissed angrily._

_She morphed into Venka as she was, "Or what?" She said demurely, giving him an impish grin, "Are you scared?" She touched his forehead and Damien felt himself bound in chains, as he turned, he saw that the warden was Venka, even despite all this being fake the image of her face, full of disgust and distrust began to break him inside." The bones began having an easier time in dragging him down. "There, just like that, give up, let us have a ride Faris, you're too soft, with what you know and with a ruthless heart this city would be mine in days." She leaned down, still as Venka, "I'll even let you dream, pretend you're in your own eternal paradise." Faris's thoughts begin to wander to his time back in the village, before he and Venka became rivals, before Anya's visit. "There… just like that…" Anya laughed as the boy's head disappeared into the mound. She turned to the body, "There, just like that I'll… huh?" She tried to move, but could not, the mound of bones began to crack and break apart as Faris burst out. "How did you escape!"_

"_Well, magic can bolster my mental dueling skills." Faris watched as the skeletons around him began to shatter, as if the light was extinguishing them. Anya looked at him, pure hate on her face as she and all those he had killed retreated into his subconscious._

"_Why won't you destroy us?!" She railed against him. "You won't let us take over! So, is this a sick continued vengeance!?"_

"_You know why." Faris sat down. "I can't forget you all whether or not I take your memories, so I might as well understand you, if I have to deal with this, then it's my penance for murdering you."_

"_You murdered murderers, who tried to murder you, and yet you're still guilty?" Anya looked tired, "What sort of saint were you on Earth?"_

"_I'm not a saint, and this is my body! My mind! I'll think whatever I want!" He laughed, "And besides! I have to thank you! Every time you all attack me it's such a great training session for my mind, I'm improving as a mental duelist by leaps and bounds."_

"…_I hate you and that naivety so much." Anya began to fade out of his mind. "But if you want to keep on playing king, then you better not lose yourself."_

"_I know." Faris said simply. She smiled cruelly._

"_I know as well, don't think this is over, we'll continue to haunt your nightmares until you destroy us or we win."_

"I know…" Faris opened his eyes exhausted He scanned the room until he saw Dusan, his eyes glowing in the darkness in mesmerizing way.

"Are you alright? You sounded like you were having night terrors."

Faris smiled. "I'm okay Dusan, thank you, it was just a dream."

The boy nodded, returning to his bed. Faris sighed, staring up at the ceiling, he was a little scared to go back to bed, but he knew he needed the sleep, and his 'ghosts' only attacked once in a while. Eventually, his eyes became heavy again and he fell back asleep.

"Get that sleep out of your eyes guys!" Faris handed out coffee to his friends as they yawned, the sun had barely risen over the horizon as Faris and his friends took their morning jog through the track. His breathing was fast and quick, faster than normal but still carried the excited exuberance he normally had them carry.

"Hey…" Nya backed up a bit to jog beside Venka, who was a few feet ahead of Seya, who stayed at the back constantly. "Venka, did anything happen to Faris last night after we left?"

"No not really, but I understand what you mean, he seems really tired." Venka looked at Faris in concern, he was jogging at an uneven quicker pace, as if each step was bringing him pain. She pushed ahead, "Faris you okay?"

"I'm good." He wasn't though, his right hand throbbed, both at the fist and forearm, and his chest hurt and creaked slightly. She frowned.

"Okay then."

After they finished their morning jog everyone separated to complete their morning drills. Faris was the last to finish like normal. "Don't worry guys, I'll be good, you leave me here all the time."

"But you look a little sick."

"What are you talking about?" Faris attempted to walk forward, collapsing on the ground. An audible snap was heard as several of his already damaged ribs broke and punctured his lungs. He began to bleed as his friends rushed him, Katya began attempting spells, but her panic kept her from concentrating well enough, soon other students and even teachers rushed over.

_My favorite exercise shirt._ Were his last thoughts before fading to darkness.


	45. Chapter 45

"We cannot let this be gotten away with!" A man dressed in ornate fineries spoke to a large group of men and women in the same guard uniform "Mages must not use their magic without government consent! We have taken steps in the right direction under queen Nasuada yes! But in my opinion, it is not enough!"

Nasuada looked at the proceeding with feigned interest. Her gaze wandered to the chairs besides her, a few had the lords and ladies of different cities and provinces in her kingdom, but the vast majority were enchanted mirrors connected to the lords in their homes. Lord Bradburn looked on with interest at the proceedings. He had come quickly from Belatona to attend this meeting. Like Nasuada he had a dislike for the power a magic user had over normal citizens, but he took it to an extreme, he and Lord Tarrant, the ruler of Gilead, wanted even stricter control of magic users throughout the kingdom. Lord Tarrant was still in his home, ever since the war ended, he has maintained constant vigil of his walls and borders with Du Weldenvarden. She turned to her other side; a few newer dignitaries were along that side. Roran, looking slightly haggard had simple farming cloths, the only thing denoting his nobility was his cloak and crest, Nasuada assumed he had been farming before the meeting. To the left of his magic mirror sat Lord Redbeard, governor of Dras-Leona, Martland for his part had a vague distaste for magic users, as Roran did, though they were currently satisfied with the restrictions on magic users. She shared those views. At the left further was Lord Jaya, and his Council, Lord Jaya had been one of the first of Galbatorix's court magicians to swear fealty, and he had led the majority of the rest to swear allegiance as well, Nasuada disliked him but had to respect him for his strength and prowess in magic. He was a staunch supporter of increasing the rights for magic users.

"It is true that this is a true affront and abuse of power, but how do you know it was one of our mages?" He looked at the speaker, his piercing eyes unnerved the man as he replied.

"A-are you saying a mage was able to slip past the defenses of this kingdom? Slip past your people?"

"My Queen may I have permission to ask him a few questions?" Lord Jaya turned to Nasuada, who waived her hand the go ahead. Thanking her, he stood and faced the group. "Let us go over the basic gist of the regulations. A mage cannot use his magic to attack a fellow mage or citizen except for a few circumstances, such examples include the apprehending of dangerous individuals, killing is of course extremely forbidden unless in the direst of circumstance."

"We know, we want your question." The orator spoke angrily. Lord Jaya merely smiled.

"Fine, isn't the searching of a citizen's mind considered harming them and their privacy?" The man nodded. "Then we aren't allowed to examine their minds, merely observe what they have on their person."

"I don't get your point."

Lord Jaya sighed, "There are about 25 different phrases in the ancient language that can kill someone extremely easily. One of my personal favorites is the snapping of the brain stem, cutting off connections of the mind to the body, causing the victim to almost immediately lose conciousness and die. Quick, painless, and less taxing than the snap of my finger." As he snapped his finger a few members reached for their swords, he grinned. "What makes you think that a mage needs to look like what you think a mage needs to look like to be a mage? Any old farmer could possibly have magical ability, and any skilled mage could pretend to be an old farmer, can you tell me that it is entirely possible to find every single mage?"

The man scowled, "Well no, but-"

"And tell me did not a contingency of mages infiltrate us a few short months ago? While we intercepted them, they got past our guards because we do not have permission to screen the minds of citizens, as that is overstepping our bounds. We can't expect citizens to learn and use the ancient language because most do not know magic, and many still fear it." He turned to the council, "How will increasing regulations on the legal use of magic stop this illegal usage, this isn't a mere weapon we are talking about, this is something people can be born with, all it takes is a single strong person outside the rules to come and destroy those within the rules wouldn't you say? I agree to the regulations we have currently because they are a fitting compromise, as long as citizens do not fear that registered mages could kill them, the chance for more superstitions to form and occur are limited. You argue that the regulations are not strict enough, and assume that the killer was one of our mages. When any mage could have done the same or more outside our already limited control."

Nasuada felt he had a point, she despised the power a magic user could have over normal citizens but she couldn't deny that it was something hard to control, it was times like this that she wished Eragon had given her the name of the ancient language, but at the same time she couldn't trust it to someone like Lord Jaya, or even Trianna. She turned further along to look at Lord Rembrant and Lady Morngale, they were a powerful political couple who had led the counter attack against the late Lord Hamlin, in exchange they received Ceunon, they were one of the few mages who wanted increased regulation, they also wanted leadership in the mage's council.

"You forget Lord Jaya; we have a member of the council who has the ability to sense magic due to a gift from our esteemed friends from the mystical forest of Du Weldenvarden." He turned to Sona, who nodded. "We can easily use that device to screen the main entrance, anyone with magical abilities will be confronted if they do not have the proper documentation."

"Even children?" Lord Jaya asked in incredulity. "I assure you that if we make things any stricter, even children wouldn't escape undue scrutiny." The council members grudgingly nodded.

"So, if it were proven that it was a child and one of our own who committed these atrocities, would you then concede your seat to me?" There was a bit of silence, before Lord Jaya replied slowly.

"Perhaps, but I'd need proper circumstance."

Rembrant's smile unnerved Nasuada as he turned to the guards at the floor. "Bring them in."

The council all looked on in interest as a group of soldiers entered the room. A young woman with surprisingly grey hair walked in, whatever her clothes had been, they were rags now. What was worse were the number of horrid bruises all over her. In toe, but also in chains was her daughter. A few members gasped at her extremely pale complexion and pure white hair.

"What is this?!" Nasuada stood angrily. "Are we breaking into citizen's homes now?!"

"My queen, give me a moment." Rembrant frowned, "This woman is connected to those 25 deaths." She sat down; arms folded. Jörmundur would yell at her for this outburst later, but right now, they all needed to understand what exactly was going on. "As I'm sure you are aware, an aristocrat's kidnapped child was recently recovered. Her tale was of being in a harrowing and painful journey, kidnapped by disgusting and evil bandits. We discovered that these reprehensible monsters come from the western grey district the former old imperial soldier location. And in the very same warehouse and barracks we found the 25 corpses we found the graves of more children, kidnapped, brutalized, and left to die and rot. Gaining the correct papers and permission we searched the girl's mind, and we saw several other children."

"And so?" Lord Jaya continued, "So they turned on themselves?"

"No," He chuckled, "They were rescued. By a mage, a child mage, a certain upstart rising child mage who seems to be a favorite amongst your mages in your council, and from you my queen."

Lord Jaya frowned. "Hmmm… and what does this have to do with this woman?'

"After finding the children, we discovered that one of them had a father who recently joined the guard, and he was one of these criminals." He waited a few moments to let it sink in. "After interrogating him and confirming that the mage child is the same one, we are all thinking off. We also discovered what exactly happened." Another mage walked in and bowed.

"Hello, I am commissioner Gaudier, I was the one in charge of interrogating the members of this kidnapping and extortion ring, 40 different men were found, all people living in the old slums." He pushed his glasses to his nose, his brown eyes large and inquisitive looking. "Their minds all revealed an interesting scene. The suspect, Faris, entered the building at some point, he had infiltrated pretending to be a lost child, he then subdued the men effortlessly, and while they were under his power, he murdered 30 of them through immolation."

"That…" Rembrant spoke, "Is several breeches of the mage code of conduct, and from a mere student."

"But he rescued those children?" Roran spoke. "Ultimately, he did wrong, but he saved some children correct?"

"Well yes, but we have reason to believe there is more to this than what we may know." Gaudier spoke again. Another man, beaten up came forward. "This is one of those men." He was severely bruised, broken teeth, bloody eye, and completely shaven bald. "We have reason to believe Faris may have had a deeper connection that we thought." He turned to the albino girl, "He had rescued her at some point on her way to an academy, paid for with money gained from extortion." The woman hung her head in shame. "And from this woman, we found that Faris had made several visitations, and had broken another law, he had taken the memories of those he killed and those who died, and shared one of them with the woman." An audible gasp could be heard by those in the room.

"Is this true?" Nasuada turned to the woman, who glanced up before looking down.

"…Yes."

"And why did Faris choose to spare you? What was his reasoning?" Rembrant spoke, smiling savagely.

"That, he felt responsibility for our lives after killing my husband."

"Yes, he let himself be compromised by the lives he killed, and in equivalence took in their conciousness. The elves warned of this, they warned of riders who had done such things, and lost their minds. The tampering of the mind is a dangerous thing, because it is our identity, a child so flippantly abusing it should not be allowed to go unpunished."

"No! He's a good boy! I don't blame him! I!"

"Silence! You have turned your eyes from the crimes you committed far enough." Gaudier turned to the beaten man.

"Ladies, un gents, uh, I thankye for allowing my confession." He bowed hurriedly and painfully. "I um, I were one of Uglauw Bartstone's top lieutenants."

"And what did he say to you a week before Faris attacked?"

"That uh… he wanted to get out of everything, that he wanted to back up, pack his things, and hightail it. Most of us, we sorta agreed, but a few of us wanted to keep going, we were too deep in, an' he knew it too. We had these two guys, Nog and Jaspen, they kept talking about this brat who attacked them when they tried to hold a sting."

"Was this child the same child who attacked you?"

"I think so, Nog and Jaspen certainly recognized 'im, and I remember they told me that Uglauw was planning on getting rid of 'is worst guys, so that the rest of us could go straight." He swallowed nervously. "When the boy came, he killed all tha guys who didn't wanna quit, but then he killed Nog and Jaspen, and Uglauw."

"It's our assertion that Faris was paid by Uglauw to get rid of the dissenters, but that he wanted Nog and Jaspen, his closest confidants and privy to his plans gone as well, Faris then decided to kill Uglauw to seal the deal."

"Can you attest to believing that?" Lord Jaya asked.

"_Yes"_ He replied in the ancient language, which caused Lord Jaya to frown.

"Why?"

"Because Faris chose to kill a convenient amount of men who either had no families who could request to find them, or were part of Uglauw's hit list, we are left to question whether he was truly just about rescuing those children, because it would make more sense for him to kill them all, or none at all that being the case."

"No! He wouldn't have, he didn't take money from Uglauw!" The woman cried out.

"How? Because he didn't take it from you? Because he 'shared' a child's life experience with you? Are you sure he didn't trick you? A boy that capable could make anyone believe what he wanted them to believe."

"That boy's no liar, you!" She widened her eyes as she spoke but no sound came out.

"Take her away." He announced to a loud chorus of anger and shouting as the councilmen began to argue.

"Silence." Nasuada spoke, quieting them. "While you state you have definitive proof over what happened, the context of Faris's actions are up for debate, it does not help his case that the only ones who could provide the context to his actions were slain by his hand. Have some men apprehend and arrest him, but make it discreet, from what you've said he's a single actor and it would be undue to rile up the students.

"Surely that can't be all you'll do! We need to be stricter! If a child can be so corrupt!"

"We!" She rose her voice, "Are treading new ground, I do not know about you, but I do not expect a ten-year-old boy to be capable of killing men in cold blood in as cruel a way as setting them on fire without a reason. We must bring him in for his account as well."

Rembrant scowled, "But my queen! He killed! He broke so many rules! That should be death immediately!"

"Lord Rembrant, I have reason to believe there may be more to this story than you believe." Lord Jaya spoke, "You yourself dislike Faris. And one of your own people attempted to assassinate him. Of course, you had nothing to do with it."

Gaudier narrowed his eyes, "Hmmm… I was never made aware of this. The theory of what Faris did, while somewhat logical, could be compromised in part due to the actions recently taken."

"What!" Rembrant puffed up angrily. "How dare you! I am a man of the law!"

"Regardless, I agree, Faris should be apprehended." Lord Jaya frowned and sighed, "Have guards and some mages go apprehend him."

Sona smiled worriedly, "I believe that may be a problem."


	46. Chapter 46

"Faris! Will he be alright?!" Venka turned tearfully to Sona, who had walked out of the hospital room.

"You kids should head to class." Sona frowned, "The healers and I are working on him."

"Mom?" Katya frowned, "He's not healed yet?"

"No not yet, but you need to head to class soon."

Katya frowned; her mother was acting strange. "Why are you trying to kick us out? It's not even a mandatory period."

Sona sighed, "Look, leave the doctors to do the rest, you staying out here is distracting okay?" She forced them all out of the hall and closed the door. "When he's better we'll send for you!" She sighed in consternation. She walked back into the hospital room, Faris lay down, a contingency of mages worked over him, another group was resting. She looked down on Faris. "What in the world happened to you?" Faris was in bad shape, his chest and upper abdominal area were bloody and torn. "How is he?" She turned to one of her mages.

"His ribs are shattered, and every time we heal them, they re-shatter." He wiped sweat off his brow despite the coolness of his brow. Faris coughed violently and blood began to splash out of his open wounds, the mages hurriedly cast spells of healing and mending, forcing his blood back in and mending his wounds, no sooner had their magic been completed had Faris's wounds flair up again.

"Why must we keep him alive?! He's been confirmed to have killed 30 men!"

"25, and regardless, Commissioner Gaudier wants to interrogate him, and so we need to keep him alive!" She looked Faris with worry, the boy was mumbling something unintelligible now, as more and more injuries began to cover his body at one point a deep rout began to start from his hand and snake through, like someone dragged a dagger across his body. "What the-!" Sona began casting magic, the cut slowed, but still dragged along until it stopped just before Faris's chest. She had the fear that if it reached his heart he would die.

"What devilry is this?!" A mage yelled. "Their murmurs of exclamation ceased when the wound stopped just before the heart. They all breathed a sigh of relief as they began to heal again. "We can't keep this up Lady Sona! We can't keep using crystals, he's going to die!"

"Well we damn well have to keep it up!" She looked at Faris, "What have you been up too?!"

"_Die!" A large clawed burning skeleton hand launched towards a boy, who barely dodged out of the way, even then the shrapnel from the impact launched burning bits of bones all over, the boy blocked the shrapnel with his arms and legs, and several lacerations appeared. Before he could land a skeletal foot kicked him and launched him down, he felt his ribs crack as it attempted to crush him. Faris pushed in vain as he felt his ribs crack, then screamed as a bony tail pierced him from behind, all of a sudden, as if by divine choice, he was filled with magical energy, it aimed to heal him, and using it, he pushed off the creature._

"_Sorry." Faris coughed, blood appearing and dissipating into the darkness of the room. "I'd rather not." The beast in front of him was a terrifying thing, it was like a demonic centaur, but the head was that of a lion with antlers, it had 4 arms, two on the normal position, and another set directly above, giving him massive shoulders. His centaur half was made of rotting flesh and bone, its forward limbs looked like human arms, and the hind limbs matched the legs of a skeletal man. Its tail was lithe and corded, bony with deep ridges ending in a scythe-like stinger. "Holy shit..." Faris sighed as he sprinted away from the onrushing centaur, barely dodging out of the way._

"_You can't escape us Faris!" The monster's voice reverberated into his head. "Surrender this body or we will kill it!"_

"_Brisingr!" Faris yelled, launching a blast of flame towards the beast, it screamed in pain, mirroring Faris's screams as burns appeared on his body as well. "That's unfair!" He growled as he charged the monster. He scrabbled up the creature as its blade struck towards him, he moved away and it struck itself, Faris felt like his body tore apart as the creature screamed in pain, it tried to dislodge its blade, but he kept it in, ignoring the white-hot pain as the blade ran deeper in. The creature turned to him, hate on its face as it began to drive its blade towards its chest, Faris groaned as he felt his body and organs begin to shift violently. He punched the creature in the face, and felt surprise when no bruise appeared on his face. "Brisingr!" The monster roared and knocked him off. Faris looked down as his body slowly began healing again, and looked in satisfaction as the monster's body not healing like his was. His smile turned to fear as the creature's tail whipped faster than he had remembered and pierced his stomach._

"_I do not know who is healing you…" It rumbled. "But if I kill you quickly, then no amount of healing will save you." Faris began hacking up blood as it dragged him and its tail forward. "Come now Faris, isn't this painful?" Forming from a bubbling mound in the monster's forehead sprouted Anya. Like a demonic tumor she formed into a horrifying visage of her defeat before reforming into her form when they first met. "You should just surrender Faris…" She stuck a hand into his open wound, causing him to wince. "I mean, dying like this is foolish isn't it?"_

"_I've died before, and I'd rather not lose my body to you lot." Faris frowned, "Shit… can't we? Form a compromise or something?"_

"_Why?" Anya cocked her head, "You should have thought of compromise before, when you were still in charge." Faris had been weakened by the fight against the ten mages, and was suffering from backlash as a result, the fact he had kept himself so active was a detriment to his recovery, and his mental state may have led to this occurring. "I do have to thank you, you come from such an interesting world, so many different fictional and real monsters about, it was hard picking and choosing what we wanted, it's weird, this used to terrify you."_

"_It used to terrify Damien."_

_She nodded, "dully noted." She grabbed him by the head. Faris felt his mind begin to wander despite the pain._

"Something's wrong, his breathing is slowing down." Sona glared at it angrily, Faris's body temperature continued to drop alongside. "It's like, his body is taking the magic? But…"

"_So… the meddlers are trying to heal you, that must be why you haven't succumbed, though you are only at half capacity at best." Anya laughed._

"_Fu-fudge you." Faris's head was feeling fuzzy, it was as if his memories of Damien were being rubbed away. It was all he could do to keep Anya from winning._

"_Too tired to curse? Or did you think you'd be able to defeat the combined might of us all?" Appearing from the monster's skin was the face of everyone Faris killed, "We won't let you rest easy Faris… give us your body!" Faris fought back with all his might, they attacked him in a disjointed wild way, and he subdued each mental attack, weaving through each unforgiving and cold tendril of hate, for each one he destroyed, another struck at him, with the defeated enemy rising like a revenant and attacking him. He was losing, and even the magic he was taking in did little more than keep him from being defeated outright. Eventually, the minds began to attack in more coordinated strikes, in groups of two, then groups of three, then four, then dozens at a time. Much like a bundle of sticks, each stick added on made it harder and harder to snap the entire bunch. "Don't you see Faris?!" Anya called out as Faris leapt away from the monster, the mental struggle all the while raging as his tried to keep from being smothered. "We are a part of you, we know everything you know! It doesn't matter that you are more skilled! We have those same skills now; we are thirty versus one!"_

"_Make that verses two." A second identical mental force to Faris's struck at the mob of souls. "Sorry… I was being a bit of a coward."_

_Faris turned in surprise to see, Damien. "But… I'm you…"_

"_She…" He turned to Anya, "Basically tried to do to you what we've done to the people we killed, took in their memories and identities and partitioned that as a separate entity, she wanted to recruit me." He laughed. "Too bad." His clothing was different, it wasn't the uniform Faris wore, nor the clothing he wore when he died, it was a blue one-piece suit, coupled with a bright red cape and a symbol on his chest. "You know, you're being really uncreative, these monster tendril stuff? Yeah that's how people fight, but you can imagine your attacks and defenses as anything, so I'm gonna be the strongest superhero I know. Faris fell on his butt as laser beams launched from Damien's eyes into the monster, who roared in pain. He charged towards the monster, smashing into it, as it broke into pieces each piece momentarily began reforming into writhing human bodies before losing their form and coming back together, now in the shape of a giant snake. Faris was surprised._

"_Why don't I feel…"_

"_Faris, this is our mind, we can do whatever the hell we want here, why are you relying on magic?" Damien was knocked back by a massive tail swing, and laughed flying back towards the beast, which had now formed into a minotaur._

"_That's the issue!" Faris yelled, looking as a green light formed from the minotaur's arm. Damien stopped too late only to be struck in the face, both he and Faris whipped around in pain. Damien looked in shock._

"_She took your imagination?!" He asked, eying the green glowing rock._

"_No, she, she blocked it, I've been trying to break through it, but I can't break down her walls." They both sensed that the different egos formed a mental barrier now, and chose not to attack. Even their combined effort wasn't enough to break through the defense. The monster reformed again, into a skeleton in a hooded cloak, holding a scythe._

"_Oh, come on!" Damien groaned. "So, what's the plan?"_

_Faris shrugged, "Every time I get injured to the point of life threatening, someone or something kept healing me, I siphoned off that magical energy to help me fight her, I've got a sizeable chunk, but it's 50-50 as to whether it would work."_

"_Huh, alright." Damien got up, and his clothing transformed again into an orange and blue martial arts Gi. He took a karate stance. "So, we need to hit her with enough magic to break her concentration, got it." Faris held out his hand, Damien chuckled, "…You've been the dude with the magic. I'm just the brains and good looks of the operations."_

"_Shut up man." Faris laughed, punching a large amount of magic into him. The two of them turned to face the monster._

"Why only Venka?" Katya asked her mother worried.

"Because we need her." Sona blocked her daughter and her friends from coming in. "This is a matter of life and death. Faris's body keeps hurting itself. His injuries are being inflicted by his own body."

"Why?" Morgan asked in worry.

"We don't know, but we can't spare the mana crystals anymore." She turned to the door, "She should be able to help."

Venka looked at the mages surrounding her nervously. "So, you just want me to provide magical energy?"

"Yes." The Mages nodded. Venka turned and grabbed Faris's hand and closed her eyes.

"What no!" A mage yelled. Startled, Venka opened her eyes, "Don't connect your minds! The injuries he forms!" A line appeared in Venka's arm and she winced, she quickly cast a spell of healing, turning to glare at the mages.

"Don't distract me."

"But! You don't know what's going on in a mental basis, you'll suffer the physical and mental backlash!" Venka ignored them as she grabbed Faris's hand.

"_Aaaagh!" Damien was in a black cloak; he held a green lightsaber in hand as the other hand disintegrated on the floor. Faris was exhausted as well, his arm slowly began to heal from were Anya had tried to lop his head off. Damien had blocked it but lost his hand in the process._

"_You won't win! The two of you aren't enough!" The grim reaper figure slashed at them and Faris had to block with a barrier of magic. Lasers shot from Damien's eyes hitting the skeleton on the cloak, it drifted away, reforming at a further distance._

"_I'm completely spent." Faris sighed as he sat down. Damien clutched his stump arm._

"_Me too… Darn it!" He paused a bit, then smiled. "Geez talk about awkward timing." He turned to Faris, "Hey, do you have any regrets?"_

_Faris frowned, "Yeah, I should have told Venka about me, you, us…"_

_Damien nodded, he charged towards Anya at full force. "Thringa iet drjugr vanyalí kveykva brisingr" (Compress my strong magic lightning-fire!) A huge ball of electricity and flames gathered from his fingertips and compressed into a bright white orb of flames and electricity, it began to spiral rapidly. Damien sported a headband with a strip of steel on the forehead area with a stylized leaf. He dodged another slash from the scythe._

"_You know you can't win!" She screamed angrily._

"_Oh, but we will! It's my ninja way!" Damien roared has he launched the orb in the grim reaper's chest. She screamed as the orb seemed to grind away at her body! "Believe it!" The magic keeping the blast conserved exploded, knocking Damien back, who was now missing both forearms._

"_That! That was stupid!" Faris yelled at him._

_Damien merely winked, "I needed to buy us a little time, attack her mind now!" He paused for a bit, "Wow, I feel unloved, you were already attacking her mentally…"_

"_Wait, what's going on?" Faris turned to Damien, who shrugged painfully._

_Faris began to feel his body flood with magic and energy, he also felt a new, familiar presence in his mind, trying to reach the deepest crevice of his mind, his inner core that he hid from her all this time. "…Venka…"_

"_Faris!" Venka's mind was distraught and confused, but also determined and angry and concerned._

_Relief began to flood him, he still felt hesitant to reveal Damien and everything going on, that hesitation was somewhat dispelled when Damien called out._

"_Heya cutie! How's life?"_

_Venka's mind seemed to stutter in its transfer, giving Anya the respite to try and strike, she instead chose to retreat and try to strike at a different time. Venka materialized next to Faris and Damien, her mind could not hold back the combination of emotions going through her as she looked at Faris and Damien, confusion, followed by recognition, revulsion, fear, acceptance, then compassion and warmth. She smiled at Faris. "Dammit Faris, I'm mad you didn't talk to me about all of this."_

"_I…" Faris paused a bit, embarrassed._

"_We were scared we'd freak you out." Damien chuckled. "Hi by the way, I'm Faris 0.501 I'm the alpha test. Call me Damien."_

"_Okay Faris 0.501" Venka stuck her tongue at him playfully. "So, what now"_

_They turned to look at Anya, who had reformed into a human form. "This isn't over, we aren't done."_

"_So," Venka began, "Is that…"_

"_A culmination of my crimes." Damien sighed, he and Faris began to shimmer, and fuse. "Sorry I had to drag you in here V…"_

"_Oh? Using the nickname? You really are feeling emotional." Venka chuckled, "Yes then, Anya!"_

_The entity looked at Venka, her eyes grinning. "7 of us here were tasked with capturing you, we failed, but we will have great pleasure killing you now." Venka laughed as she knocked the amalgamation down instantaneously. It struggled to put itself together only to be dashed apart, again, and again, and again. "How!?" The amalgamation screamed._

"_Well, magic can enhance mental ability, and I'm not the best mentalist, but I have a lot of magic. A veritable, gold mind." She extended her fist and blasted Anya down. "Okay!" She turned to Faris, "You need to subdue them, right?"_

_Faris nodded, "But I've got to make sure it's complete, and…"_

"_You don't know whether you'll win? But you have to do it alone…" She frowned, "I'll give you five minutes."_

_Faris smiled, he kissed Venka on the cheek, "Thanks!" She merely sighed in annoyance, but he smiled at the warmth radiating from her mind. He turned to Anya. "okay, things are a bit more even, mono a mono."_

_She merely growled angrily as he walked forward. "So! You're going to kill us finally?"_

"_No…" Faris grimly shook his head, "we're going to go at each other, full force, whoever wins takes over, you lot versus me. And this time, no cheating."_

"_That isn't fair." One of the ego's cried out, Faris recognized it as Nog._

"_That's funny coming from a child murdering psychopath." He opened his arms in an inviting stance as the different egos surged into him, he turned to Venka, who nodded as she was ejected from the inner recess of his mind. Smiling he donned a red cape and blue suit, sitting cross legged as the battle continued to rage within._

The mages held their breaths as Venka let out a deep sigh, as if waking from a dream. "Are you alright?"

Venka was breathless and appeared exhausted, she had used more of her magic than normal, all to keep Faris from being destroyed either mentally or physically. He appeared as if he was resting, peaceful even, but she could imagine the mental duel occurring. Venka turned to the mages. "I am well, we just have to wait."


	47. Chapter 47

The room remained silent as Faris's breathing began to slow again, the mages tensed every time his face changed its expression, eyes still closed, eventually, Faris opened his eyes. He looked at each of the mages, who's faces ranged from bewilderment, relief, and a suspicious caution. He turned to Venka, who was smiling at him, mirroring her expression he mouthed the words 'thank you'. Just as he did so the door opened and nearly a dozen imperial guardsmen filed in followed by 6 mages wearing royal regalia.

"Faris Ser, you are under arrest for the unlawful utilization of magic, the murder of 25 men, and for suspicion of aiding and abetting a child smuggling ring." The mage reading this was a young-looking brown-haired mage with a haircut and face reminding him of Harry Potter, along with the giant spectacles, the only thing missing was the lightning bolt scar and wand. "Come with us quietly."

Before Faris could get up Venka stood first. "Over my dead body, he needs rest!"

The man looked at her for a bit before shaking his head and turning to his guards and fellow mages. Before Venka could do anything Faris raised his hand to stop her. "I'll come!" He turned to Venka, "Please don't make this a big deal Venka, I did break the rules."

"There! He confessed! Execute him now!" Lord Rembrant entered the room smugly, his grin was soured by Faris smiling at him.

"I see you're in high spirits, I hope you found the ring well, I'm sure you noticed I didn't touch it's energy." Faris stuck his tongue out, only to be smacked by one of the guardsmen.

"On your feet!" He shouted. Faris had to hold in his temper, closing his eyes he got up and extended his hands, he felt the bindings tighten around him as he walked with them outside.

Venka looked agitated throughout the entire ordeal. Lord Rembrant, deciding to gloat one more time grabbed Faris by his locks, squeezing tightly and shaking him violently. Faris couldn't help but wince in pain. "You will burn for your impertinence you savage mutt."

Faris felt the wind actually at his neck as Rembrant was sent through the wall, Venka charging right after, flames in hand and magic in the air. "Venka no!" He screamed as half the imperial guards pinned him down and the other half along with the mages chased after her and Rembrant. The mage who arrested Faris looked at the whole thing with a contemplative look.

Venka had no patience for this entire thing, she could understand why they were arresting him, he used magic on citizens, and killed them, the way he killed them was terrible, and scary, but she could understand, especially after what Anya did to her family, perhaps it was also because of that recent brush with Anya that she was feeling so angry. The man in front of her used his ruby's reserves flippantly, trying to kill and maim her, failing to bypass her wards he attempted to freeze her, but the ice merely stopped, curving around her wards and bouncing off harmlessly. Venka looked at the ruby, then at the rest of the jewels the man had on his person. Cracking her knuckles, she yelled, _"Jierda!"_ The man's eyes widened as each of his priceless gems, filled with a vault of magical energy, broke, he screamed in fear as the energy exploded out, breaking through his wards. Venka knocked him out of the way before the unleashed energy could kill him, and instead she redirected it upwards, where it dissipated into the city wall. A blast that massive caused the wall to ripple, sirens began to sound as mages and imperial guardsmen began to pour in.

"Seize her!" Rembrant screamed, clothing burned and ruined, he stared at the girl, "Execute her!" He screamed shrilly as the men and women began to surround Venka, who merely looked at them.

"Malthinae!" Of the 100 people, 35 began to panic as their wards alarmingly dropped and they were pinned to the floor, Venka's eyes glowed with magical energy, just as mage students began to run towards the commotion. This included her friends, who stared in disbelief as their friend stared down the mages and imperial guardsmen, dozens of whom had been collapsed on the floor. Even as she held them down flames, lightning, ice spears, rocks, arrows, and spears continued to bounce off her wards uselessly.

"Venka…" Her friends could vaguely understand what was going on, Rembrant was injured, a few mages had pinned down Faris, and Venka was attacking. Before anyone could say anything, Morgan ran out to Venka. A soldier charged Venka as she turned to see him, he extended his hand, blasting out a medium well of lightning into the soldier, knocking him back but not killing him. Katya followed after, then Nya, they stood side by side with Venka, who looked at them in surprise.

"But…" She began, "You shouldn't help, you'll get in trouble."

"Should have damn well thought about that before you decided to do this stupid thing!" Nya sighed in irritation. She looked at the larger group of mages, who had begun to attack in greater earnest. She had no delusions of defeating them.

"Venka, we're sticking with you, we don't understand what's going on, but we trust you and Faris." Morgan chuckled, "Afterall, we've known you guys for a good bit, right?"

Venka faltered, then sighed. "Thanks guys."

"Though seriously." Katya groaned, "My wards are going to fail in a matter of minutes, all that energy we gained lost soon!"

Nya and Morgan both felt her pain, they turned to look at Venka, who was visibly sweating as the blasts continued to rain down, she had been taking the brunt of the magic.

"Venka, you should teleport away, you've been taking all the magic, you've got to take Faris and run!"

Venka shook her head, "Open my satchel." Nya did, revealing a ruby necklace, Venka unceremoniously looped it around her neck and she began to sigh in relief as the crystal began to glow. No one could look at the crystal as it glowed with enough radiance that someone would thing a second sun had risen.

"What the hell is that?" Gaudier mumbled to himself.

Faris chuckled through the pain of his pin down, "Venka's never used her crystal, ever."

"What?" A mage shouts, "That's impossible! She had to have been using it just then! That's how she lasted so long!" He was silenced as more mages and guard's wards began to fail and they were pinned to the ground. More mages and guards entered the streets only to be pinned down, eventually, they realized that the range of one hundred meters seemed to be her limit and stayed there, but they were at an impasse now.

"You don't have the magic power to target her with long range attacks and exhaust her wards just yet, and you fear her retaliating." Gaudier looked around thoughtfully. "This is a foolish Quagmire we are in, why would you all be so irrational."

Venka turned to him murderously, "Your friend over there!" She pointed at Rembrant, who flinched in fear, "hurt my friend, I merely returned the favor."

"Impertinent girl!" Rembrant shrunk back in fear as an arrow grazed his face, launched by Nya.

"Shut up old man!"

The guards stood still, unable to do anything, more than a few of them were absolutely terrified at what was going on. No human should have been powerful enough to do this. The same word began to reverberate through their minds, and a clammy fear began to overtake their hearts.

_Shade._

This fear caused them to not move another step.

"Call your friends off." Gaudier looked at Faris, who tried to emulate a shrug from his position.

"I'm not controlling them, you decided to let Rembrant do that."

"And you provoked him."

"And you arrested me."

"You committed a crime!" Gaudier exclaimed in anger. "You are in the wrong."

"You know what's wrong?!" Faris roared in anger now, surprising the guards pinning him down.

"Hold your tongue cur!" One screamed, hitting him hard on the back of the head. Even with the ringing of the ears Faris kept his eyes of Gaudier.

"I get the gist of this whole thing. I'm being arrested for what I did! I admit it! I killed those men!" He turned to the guards pinning him and the mages around him. "But let me fucking ask you this! How many graves did you count outside that warehouse!?" He amplified his voice with magic, causing everyone to turn to him. "One hundred and fifty!" His voice began to break, holding back his emotions he shouted, "That was the number of children in there who were dead, that I had to find and bury, only 20 or so of them were complete corpses." His eyes were reddening as the tears formed. "Do you know how long they had been doing this?! 10 goddamn years!" He looked at Gaudier, who stared back impassively, "Ten damn years," He lowered to a whisper, "And none of those other children where looked into, only one of them, a child of a rich man and his wife, who had been kidnapped merely 5 days before my rescue. And already they had been worried because people were looking for them, when they exploited the people in the slums you looked away."

"Shut your mouth!" The guard reared his hand to strike down again, Faris saw stars, and the guard's hand twisted until it snapped as Venka knocked him off of Faris. He screamed in pain and the fight looked like it was about to break out again, only for a dragon's loud roar to reverberate the entire city section as the rider and his dragon began to circle and land.

Vulcan looked around; his face twisted in shock. "What in blazes are you people doing?!" He stroked his beard quickly.

Gaudier stepped forward, "Honored rider, I ask forgiveness for showing you such a scene, this boy had committed several crimes, and as we made our way to arrest him, his friends interceded and began to disrupt our process, leading to the scene before you."

Volund narrowed his eyes, lips twisted in a snarl smoke billowed from his nose. He stared at Venka, who looked at him with a mix of fear and defiance.

_That pup is powerful_

Vulcan sighed, "Young man, you are Faris right?"

Faris chuckled, lip cracked, "Sorry I couldn't have met you in better circumstances honored Shur'tugal."

Vulcan sighed, "Did you commit all the crimes they have accused you of?"

"I don't know unfortunately, see, I don't very much like Lord Rembrant, and he certainly doesn't like me, so while I have fairly certain I have done some wrong things, I'd rather not say anything stupid. I would be perfectly fine with being thrown in a jail cell for the time being. But because Rembrant wanted to take the time to gloat we are in this situation now.

Vulcan was taken aback at Faris's brusque and rude tone. "Why are you being so disrespectful boy?! Do you not know your stature? You are a citizen of this kingdom and beholden to its laws!"

Faris sighed, "Sir, have you ever seen a brutalized child? Have you witnessed the laws of a nation fail to protect its people? That's what I witnessed, so I intervened, did I do wrong? Yes, but I won't change what I did."

"So, you do admit to murder!" Rembrant crowed. "That's execution then!"

Vulcan truly did not like him, but right now his most pressing matter was subduing both sides. _Volund, what are our chances of stopping that girl?_ He didn't dare turn his eyes to catch Venka's ire, though he could already feel she was staring at him and his dragon.

_The Eldunari were kind enough to give us a decent well of magic, we can overwhelm her, but we will exhaust most of it._

Vulcan shook his head, "Girl, call back your magic, I can assure you my protection, and no harm will come to you, or your friends."

Venka looked hesitant.

"I give you my word, in front of all these men of the Broddring kingdom, as a Rider, you will be under my protection until this is all sorted out." Venka's shoulders relaxed, and the pinned men began to feel as if a load had been taken as they stood up, many of them glared at Venka and her friends with distaste, fear, or hate, but warning growls from Volund caused them to reconsider any ideas of vengeance. Vulcan sighed as he turned to Faris, helping him up he healed the boy's bruises. "This is a mess…"

Nasuada nursed an even worse migraine than before, she had spent the majority of yesterday listening to the problems the citizens came to her about, she remembered listening to an hour-long heated debate between a chicken farmer and a sheep herder over which animal was more productive and thus deserved first pick of the crop in the morning. They eventually came to a compromise, but that made the debate all the more ludicrous and useless in hindsight. Even worse now was the fiasco. Lord Rembrant had made an ass of himself, sparking rage in Venka in a similar fashion to when Lord Jaya and the council had tried to provoke her, the difference being he was somewhat in the right at the circumstances due to Faris's alleged crimes. What was even worse was that some of the children of the Thirteen had decided to join with Venka, who had subdued a sizeable chunk of her delta squad.

"They may be fresh from training but there were still almost 300 of them…" She took a sip of mint tea, swallowing in distaste. This fiasco had reached the public, who were both upset over the happenings and more distrustful of mages. More calls for tougher legislation were being made in. Nasuada would have been alright with this if not for the way some anti-mage groups were using this opportunity, state mages perfectly innocent of the situation were being ganged up on and attacked, and tensions were beginning to rise. "This entire stupid situation!" She sighed, "Hanna!?"

"Yes, my queen?" Nasuada looked at her trusty aid, her old maid had happily retired to a cozy cottage in the royal grounds, so Hanna was a godsend.

"What is the public sentiment over this entire case?"

"Well my queen, the publishers are keeping neutral, but there is an overwhelming public sentiment against Faris, Venka, and the rest of the student mages, since the case's full details have not been shared, the available information makes it seem like a very black and white situation." She perused the files she was juggling. "There will be an initial hearing before the full case in a month. Due to the council's influence Venka and the other first year pearls other than Faris have only been reprimanded by the state, they are facing punitive measures."

"And what of Faris?'

"Well…" Hanna began.

"They're keeping you here until the court case?! But that's in a month!" Venka gripped the bars to the cell. Faris was the one in behind them, but she was feeling almost as trapped. Several guards and mages had their weapons trained on her, but she paid them no heed, none of them had even bothered trying to stop her from entering the long dark corridor that hid the holding cells for this specific prison complex, either from Vulcan's own orders, the intimidating power Venka displayed, or a more likely mix of both.

"Bureaucracy and the like Venka." Faris smiled comfortingly, "Come on, you've got to go, the longer you stay here the worse it'll be for you."

"I don't care, you shouldn't be in here!"

"Venka, I broke the law, you know I broke the law, it doesn't matter what reason I had, they caught me, so I'll have to defend myself legally."

"But anyone would have done what you…" Venka held her head down. "I'll take you out, come on!" She began to look in concentration, the guards tensed at her sudden shift.

Faris shook his head, "And where would we go?"

"To Surda!"

"There's a war going on, they'd be on high alert for new faces, even kids, especially when news of an escape reaches them."

"Then to Du Weldenvarden!"

"They would likely inquire about why we're here, and if you make too big a commotion like you're doing now, the Queen would have no choice but to order our extradition back into kingdom lands. And these poor guys are looking really uncomfortable." One of the guards coughed.

"Then, I'll take you to the-"

Faris started laughing, "Please don't say the dwarves, half the time they don't really think fondly of humans, and human children grow too quickly for their taste to deal with, and the problem with all of them is you're powerful enough to do anything you want unimpeded, and I've got blood on my hands, neither of us are exactly trustworthy as free agents."

Venka groaned, "Why do you think this is funny! You're being held here because that prim blowhard Rembrant wants to get payback, if they really cared they would have rescued those children! Not punish you for stopping the criminals!"

"Well unfortunately it's my word against heaps of circumstantial evidence, and besides, all I have to do is speak my case to them in the ancient language, I know exactly the things I did wrong, and so they can't try to pin stupid bs on me, and depending, the judge may have a conscience and let me off easy." He turned to one of the mages, who yelped, "I'm not gonna bite you geez! But yeah, depending he'll cut me a break, right?"

She shrugged, "Well sir"

"Call me Faris, I'm only eleven."

"…Faris…" She began, eying Venka gingerly, "Using your magic without authorization, especially to kill is a serious matter, of course depending on the circumstances, you may receive lesser punishment, this is the first time such a high-profile violation was committed by someone so young, but the seriousness of the violations requires this level of punishment, for public sentiment…" She stuttered a few apologies and the soldiers held their breath as Venka narrowed her eyes.

"Okay." She turned back to Faris, "You better be okay, if they did anything to you, tell me alright?"

Faris nodded, smiling, "Of course!" As she turned to leave, he looked at the guards, who merely stared at him. "What? Don't worry I took the drugged food; I couldn't cast magic if I wanted to." They still stared at him hard.

"Why didn't you leave, we heard about what you two are capable of, even while drugged you resisted the high interrogator's attempt to burrow into your mind, and you still remember the ancient language enough to coherently speak on your behalf, even when you can't use magic." The mage furrowed his brow. "I wouldn't have stood for that."

Faris stood up gingerly, and walked towards the front of his cell, under the light a few of the guards couldn't help but feel queasy over the scar tissue, open wounds, and nasty gashes over his skin below the neck, a few were old but the vast majority was new, the worst thing was the swollen lump in his left hand, his arm had been broken. "Well, thank you for the honesty, but at least I wasn't branded." He narrowed his eyes, his face chilling the guards. "A woman and little girl, barely eight, were branded, and whipped, and beaten like I was in order to get information out of them that was easily available through mental interrogation." He looked at his finger, it throbbed painfully as he inspected the bloody holes that used to be his fingernails. "The girl was missing two fingernails, the mother had broken fingernails, fingers, and toes. There's no way she knew anything, and the mother's not the type to let her daughter suffer for her. And someone interrogating them would know she recently had her daughter's nails done in a really pretty way, and that she was looking forward to that treatment again in a month. Do you know what that means?"

He laughed at their silence, "It means they weren't just questioned, they were tortured, but neither of them did badly enough to warrant such actions, unless the Broddring Kingdom is actually worse than the empire before it, it was done to piss me off, because otherwise I wouldn't have been put in temporary holdings with them." He frowned, "That tells me Rembrant probably has more than a few 'fair and neutral' agents on his payroll." A few of the guards flinched at his gaze and knowing eyes, focused despite the drug laced into his food. "I'm standing this torture because if they find me guilty, I'm officially a criminal, and I get to act like a criminal would act."

"What…." A few of the guards held their spears tightly.

"If I'm found to be acquitted on the other hand, I'll be able to advocate to destroy Rembrant politically, and also financially as a bonus token of my regard." He held the cold bars with his brutalized hands, exhausted from the movement and even standing given how badly he had been tortured. "You all better hope I'm found innocent or acquitted, because cute stuttering won't save you from losing two fingers for every nail you ripped off Marla."

Vulcan sighed in concern; he had only been allowed to see Faris once after they had been ushered in to the waiting penitentiary. Venka had grown impatient and walked into the building, Vulcan wanted to stay neutral but still warned them to allow her in. The fact the building wasn't being recklessly demolished was either a good sign, or a very bad sign. He gazed at the other children, he had passed by them before, and their expressions had before ranged from excitement and trepidation to awe and fear, right now, they were all intently staring at the entrance into the prison complex. It was one of the old ones under Galbatorix's rule, like all his prisons, they were large and cruel, perfectly suited to hold more people than any would deem appropriate. Now it housed mostly thieves and vagabonds, as well as the occasional countryside bandit.

_If you worry so much enter the building yourself, or better yet let me destroy the dreaded thing._

_No! That would be inappropriate, we represent the riders, we are at the status of kings and must move accordingly to our stature, especially amongst the common people, and especially in the midst of the young._

_Bah! These pups are beginning to irritate me, get them to speak!"_

_Why don't you talk to them?_ Vulcan retorted, but he blinked in surprise as his dragon did just that.

"H-hello?" Nya began startled, looking at Vulcan, then outside to see the Bronze Dragon's eye glittering through the window.

_You pups are too quiet, speak, I wish to understand how you feel of this matter._

Morgan was the first to speak up, "I wish Faris had told us…." They had reacted almost the same way to Venka when she relayed what Faris did and why he did it. "He had told us before he had had to kill, and Venka told us of the times she was almost kidnapped by the Black Hand, so we should have known that was something he could do if push comes to shove, but those men, what they did, I can't say I would have let them get away either, but I'm not even prudent enough to check for such atrocities. Th-they are so…"

"Atrocious" Katya finished. "We all saw the fairths of the uncovered burials, some of the bones showed sustained blunt force damage, especially in the head, chest, and pelvic area." She gripped her sword, "The limbs had been hacked off and more than a few had most of their teeth and jaws gone. And several had signs of being burned, different from magical flames, an oil burn."

Vulcan spat and swore a dwarven oath against bad omens, twisting his third ring exactly three quarters as he did. "Guntera's mercy… How could anyone do such things to their own clansmen?"

_Vulcan, are you letting your emotions get the better of you?_

_Volund!? This is not the time to make quips, that boy is going to be punished for doing the right thing?!_

_As you said, there's nothing to be done about it yet, it would be inappropriate._ The dragon yawned.

_Rrgh,_ Vulcan stood, just as Venka came out, her face was somber and inscrutable as she sat with the rest of the group, she didn't respond to any of their prodding, choosing to sit in silence. Vulcan opened his mouth, then closed it, then opened it again. "Are you ready to go." Venka was silent, choosing only to nod slightly. He turned to the rest of the group, they had been barred from entering, and Venka had stormed in before they could catch up. Despite that they nodded.

_They have confidence in their youngest member._

_Perhaps they do, but they must also help the girl it seems, she is the most emotional in this entire debacle._

"Alright, come on kids, let's get you back"


	48. Chapter 48

"Haya! Bergan! It's terrible!" A boy of about 11 ran towards the home just outside the village proper, the sound of smithing and the bleating of a few sheep filled the air. He pounded on the door rapidly. Haya Ser opened it, smiling at the boy.

"Oh, hello Jasper, how are you?" Her smile faltered as she looked at the boy's face. "What's wrong? Is your mother or father sick? Is a tool broken?"

Jasper shook his head. "No ma'am, it's the news, a passing trader passed by the village, holding newsprint. I noticed your son's face; he didn't look so good."

Haya took the sheet, and her eyes glazed over as she fainted.

_Can you hear me?_

Faris opened his eyes, he scanned his dark cell, he could see no one, and he had no cellmates.

_Well?_

…_Yes… _He responded, cautious and curious, the mind was different than minds he had been in contact with before, and it had not felt malicious, thus he allowed it to meet his.

_Good, I thought I'd have to call like a maid after her unfaithful rogue into the wind._

_Nice to meet you too, can I ask who this is?_

_That depends, who are you…_

Faris sat up, leaning his back against what he believed to be the wall of the pitch-black room.

_I am Faris Ser, currently imprisoned, who're you?_

_I am Volund Bronzeflame, dragon of the Rider Vulcan, and the second in command of the new rider order air force._

_Oh… Well I guess that makes the Nïdwhal the navy then._ Faris chuckled, _I never thought I'd meet a dragon so soon._

_You aren't surprised to meet me?_

_Well I'm rather surprised you would want to speak to me, general consensus is that I'm a cold murderer._

_You don't sound like a murderer, rather you sound rather weary._

Faris laughed.

"Shut up in there!" A voice called out angrily. Faris quieted down.

_Well, you are right, I am very tired, why did you wish to speak to me?_

_Two reasons, one, I'm curious as to the nature of an oddity such as yourself._

_I hope I've lived up to your expectations._

_That remains to be seen, but I can promise you I am not entirely unimpressed, your mind despite being drugged feels quite alert, and you do well in masking the flashing throbs of pain registering all over your body._

_You have a dry air of wit about you._

_Yes, I do, it comes from dealing with young dragons eager to gain their own territory whilst reconciling with wild and rider dragons older than the empire before._

_Oh? How old are you._

_I can say I am very much older than you, and even then, dragons do not age like you fragile humans, we reach mental maturity much faster, and each year after we grow wiser and wiser._

_So, I've heard, then you're twelve?_

…_Well, actually 14, but it doesn't even matter! I must tell you the second item of importance. My bond Vulcan wanted to let you know your friends are alright, they have been given a light reprimanding on behalf on his regard. Unfortunately, he could do nothing for you given the seriousness of your case._

_Wait, so attacking a large group of mages isn't serious?_

_There's precedent, and that girl is too fiery to be held down. A spirited mare, she is._

_I'd metaphorically drink to that._ Faris made the motion as he lifted his nonexistent cup to his cut and dry lips.

_I have heard stories of the prisons under the Oath-Breaker's rule, you look like a victim of those stories._

_Evil people exist in every era, as do good, I've just been under the jurisdiction of the former for a short stint._

_You seem hopeful._

_I'm merely keeping my head above the water, giving in to despair is exactly what a certain bunch of people want for me to do._

_I wish you sharp fangs and claws for when you tear your adversaries' throats and disembowel them from chest to pelvis._

_Thank you, I uh, wish you strength to… not die in the war you have to rejoin, and hope you find opponents worthy of your prowess great Skulkblaka. _Faris felt Volund's humor.

_I wish you a good night child._

Faris waited until the air felt completely empty before his sighed. He lay back down and tried to sleep, doing as well as he had before Volund's visitation.

"I bet the precedent was Celica."

Celica sneezed. "Must be the pollen." She turned to the youth in front of her, all of them in holding a sword out in front of them, anytime it looked like they would drop it she would whack them in the head, just hard enough to hurt but not leave a cut or bruising.

"Ow!" Nya winced angrily.

"Nya you're slacking, it's only been 4 hours and 31 minutes, 2 minutes over your last record."

"Hahaha-ow! Angvar's beard that smarts! Ow! Why?! Ow!" Katya dropped her sword in shock, Celica rapped her hand hard.

"Pick it up!"

"Yes maa-OW!" She hopped forward as Celica struck her in the butt. "Ow! Why?!"

The rest of the first years snickered, only to find hard knocks on their foreheads. "Every day kids! Every day for this week!"

As noon began to draw in the other mage students passed by, whispered gossip soon turned into open mocking.

"There's the idiots!"

"Losers!"

"This isn't nearly enough of a punishment!"

A particular group of hotheaded students walked up. "Well well well, the brats too big for their britches getting their due service?" He turned to Celica, "Lady Celica, I'm sorry you had to be tasked with dealing with this foolhardy lot."

"Hmmm…" Celica didn't so much as look at the students, she nonchalantly struck Morgan, who had turned to glare at the students. This elicited chortles from the students. The only one who's face hadn't reddened from the insults and embarrassment was Venka, she had stayed stock still the entire time, her sword unmoving, continuously staring ahead.

"Yo! Check this one out! This little girl thinks she's a tough soldier or something!" The students gathered around Venka.

"Isn't that tiring? Or do monsters like you not feel fear!"

"Look at her hair!" One of them grabbed unto a strand of Venka's hair, pulling her off balance. Morgan was the first one on the student, punching him in the face and stepping on his groin repeatedly, Katya and Nya in hot pursuit, just as quickly though Celica stopped the ensuing fight.

"If you start now! You're all getting expelled!"

"Oh, now we're getting expelled? And what? Fighting state mages just gives you a reprimand? Or is it because you think they're more important?"

Celica grit her teeth, "Stand down now, you are treading dangerously thin ice young man."

The boy got up, rubbing his bruised face as he healed it with magic. "Fine then, no harm really done." He turned to look at Venka, who had in the time methodically gotten up and had returned to her position, sword in hand, looking straight ahead. "Look at her! All expressionless, like she aint human, you hear the rumors? They say she's a shade, and look at her hair, and her magic? I believe them." He stepped on her foot and spat at her face, a mix of saliva and phlegm hit her cheek, everyone's breath held as it ran down half an inch before Venka wiped it off and resumed her position.

"Uh… head to class, all of you!" Celica's face was a mix of anger, irritation, confusion, and wariness, Venka was normally very vocal before.

As they left mummering words of vengeance Nya turned to Venka, "Are you okay? Ow."

"I don't want to cause another scene, if I do, it might make Faris look bad, one of the accusations is that I aided in his actions."

"But that isn't true! Ow"

"Regardless it's a point held by the prosecution, if I act out, they'll try to implicate me, and in order to not let that happen, Faris would throw the case." Venka looked at her friends, "So, I'm not going to cause trouble, no matter what."

"And I thought I was the most mature one…" Morgan mused sadly, "We'll stick by that plan then, and I'll try and talk to my sources, see if there's anything they can do to help. Ow"

Venka smiled lightly, "Thanks…" She turned forward again after the third strike to her head, resuming her position, still as a statue under the midday sun.

_It's too freaking hot._ Faris milled about, looking at the hardened men around him, men of different sizes and shapes all wore the dark grey wool tunics given to mark them as prisoners, uncomfortable and itchy, and a few more than a little too tight, for his part the smallest pair they could find was still lose on him, and he struck a bemusing juxtaposition. This was a 1-hour leisure time the guards allowed the prisoners, most of them took the time to exercise, or play small games to pass the time and keep sane, Faris for his part kept his distance, he was nowhere near capable of taking any of them down, and from the way many of them looked at him, he'd need a weapon to defend himself soon. As it was, he was by a set of uneven bars, a little higher up than eleven feat, he used it to exercise, practicing his pullups, curls, and a few other exercises while also granting him some view of the prison complex. Most of Galbatorix's insignias had been wiped away, but more than a few remained, a glaring reminder that some of the trends of that old empire were still here today.

"You're that bastard mage, right?"

Faris looked down, "That's mister bastard mage actually." He saw a large man, nearly seven feet tall, and pushing three hundred pounds, he looked like one of those WWE wrestlers. "What are they feeding you guys? You're a literal house." He muttered under his breath. The large man had a scarred face that could quiet any crying baby.

"Get down here now!" He was with a group of rough looking inmates who all stared at Faris dangerously.

"And what will happen if I come down? You guys are looking pretty scary."

"Oh? Aren't you a mighty mage who slayed 25 men? Or are you scared without your little magic you can't bully us around." A group now began to gather under Faris, and he clambered to the top of the beam in a cat-like motion as one of them leapt up the bottom beam.

"Don't let him get away!"

Faris almost lost his balance as a rock beaned him in the temple, he felt a hot liquid drip down past his lips, he licked it, tasting blood in his mouth. His head swarm as he gripped tighter, lowering his head so that his body could serve as cover, he winced as several more rocks hit him, his uncomfortable wool tunic doing little to dampen the blows. More and more men began either throwing stones or climbing up to grab him. Faris raised his head just in time to catch another rock aimed for his arm, he gripped it tightly, waiting until the first of the climbers almost reached him, he smashed their hand down hard, then bashed them in the side of the temple, pushing them into the next climbing criminal, soon a whole group of them began tumbling down, crashing unto the crowd below them, Faris leapt down alongside, landing on one of them on the leg, he winced slightly as he landed wrong, scraping his knee badly, but he sprung up quickly and sprinted off, leaving his fellow inmate with a bruised back and broken thighbone. In a matter of seconds, he heard people bounding after him, he looked in a panic for any guards to help. He saw the same group of guards in charge of his torture session looking on with interest and amusement, one had a cup of mead in her hands. He glowered at them for a bit, turning around and jogging full speed to barely duck under a reaching arm, his hand swiped quickly by, breaking the man's wrist with a calculated bash of his rock. The man howled in pain and dropped a shiny silvery object. Faris did not at all hesitate to kick high and fast, aiming between his legs and dropping him. He barely glanced at the item before he picked it up, sprinting again just as the next inmate almost reached him.

"Get back here! Fight like a man!"

"I! Am! Eleven goddamit!" He allowed the inmate to close in on him, dodging his sloppy punch he stabbed him twice in the thigh, then once in the quadriceps. As he collapsed to his knees a swift chop to the back of the neck and a vicious shove knocked in into three more inmates. Faris used the collapsed pile as a stepping stone to leap over the next inmate, stabbing him in the small of the back twice as he barreled past. Faris turned to the rest of the inmates, bloody shank in right hand, bloody rock in the other, his eyes were fierce and angry. The inmates had slowed down now, looking at him warily. "What?!" He looked at them, "Thought I was just a stupid kid?! What the fuck do you even think I did?! Go after a bunch of normal people and just kill them?! I went after pieces of shit as fucked up as you guys probably are!" He brandished his weapons. "Anyone else?! You'll probably kill me, but I'll make sure the next one to come at me won't wake up tomorrow!" The men stood, hesitating. The man who started the confrontation pushed his way forward, brandishing his large fists.

"I don't like you, but I can tell a lot about a man through their fists. Make way!" The prisoners formed a circle.

_Melodramatic ass._ He rolled his eyes but entered a martial pose it was not the straight forward Karate or the flowing Kungfu, it was a simple but effective martial art, he picked it up from one of his old parent's security detail, who was a retired Israeli officer. He adopted a stance just as the man's right fist hurdled towards his face, his head exploded in pain and he saw stars as the man's other fist collided with his stomach. He launched back, barely flipping and landing on his feet to roll out of the next attack. "That was a cheap shot!"

"You reacted, didn't you?" The man wiped the blood of his arm, courtesy of Faris's commandeered shank. "Not the worst scrapper at all." He shook his head, "But you're too sneaky, a real man would fight face first."

"I am, eleven." Faris sighed as he charged towards the man, he sidestepped quickly as the fist whiffed past his head, his rock smashed into the second fist. Faris's eyes widened as it shattered but he did not hesitate to strike the man hard with his closed fist in the temple. The man stepped back, disoriented and shaken, he looked at the boy, who's fist struck him hard in the nose. Everyone heard the audible crack as the nose snapped. Faris jumped now, kicking him in the temple. _Just keep this up and-!_ He felt a massive blow to his side, stumbling he turned, he didn't look to the other inmates but to the guards, who were laughing now. He barely had time to react as he took another blow to the back from his assailants from afar, right into the large man's hurtling fist. Faris opened his eyes, he was on the floor, with the man charging towards, him, he had been knocked out and lost conciousness for that short while, he rolled out of the way but his vision was blurred and pained. He barely dodged the next kick, scrambling up only to take another invisible blow knocking him down and leaving him prone for the next two hit combo, he felt his dominant arm snap, he moved with the momentum of the punches, backing up from the man. The pain cut through whatever fog still held his mind and he could feel the rumbles of magic, he extended his mind out, he turned his body a few inches, moving to dodge another punch just as the magic knocked him forward, luckily, he had shifted his position enough to dodge the attack.

_I can't keep that up forever._ He began to concentrate on the area around the guards, the guard using magic was the same girl, he felt that one of them had dropped a cup of mead, and there were a few birds flying nearby. He commandeered one of their minds, directing it to the shiny jeweled ring on the guard's hand. _Go get it._ He dodged back, rolling again and again to dodge the attacks. He glanced at the incoming crows only to catch a kick he wasn't ready for, now with both arms broken he stared down the man. He could hear the guards' minds now, eager to watch him fail, he had bothered them more than they would like it seemed. But that would change in _3, 2, 1._ Faris ducked under the swinging fist just as he heard the guards begin to curse and flail about, he kicked the man hard in the elbow, causing him to turn. He took a wide stance and kicked hard. It was a beautiful, artistic, and leaping kick, he never did think he'd use such a kick, it was from a martial art developed by slaves, masked as dancing in order to keep others from discovering what they were doing. The attacks were impractical but extremely strong if landed right. His body twisted and flipped in the air as his heel careened for the top of the man's temple. He felt the man crash under him, only to catch himself with one arm. _Welp._

The blow was swift and sudden, merciless as it knocked him out almost instantly. He barely had enough time to soften his landing before he lost all conscious thought. The men's rowdy cheers were stopped dead silent as Faris's unconscious form hovered six inches above the ground before collapsing. No one approached the boy, allowing the guards to come and clear them all out, the tall man turned to see them surround the boy and pick him up.

Faris laughed as the metal rod struck him in the side, smiling even as the tears glistened and fell down his face.

"How did you use magic to summon the birds?!"

"What birds?" Faris masked his groan with a chuckle as the iron rod shattered his shoulder. His arm sagged unnaturally and his wrists bled slightly as they chafed against the shackles holding him down. "So…" He asked, eyes closed and sweat dripping down his face, "Are you going to kill me and pretend it was an attempt on my part to escape?" He groaned audibly as a red-hot poker struck him in the side.

"Shut your face fool!" The "interrogator", despite being uninjured, was also tense and sweating profusely, Faris's mind still continued to rigidly hold against the mental onslaught.

"Oh? Did Venka scare you all that much?" He turned to one of the masked guards, "I like your ring." She looked at her gloved hand, panicked, he laughed at her quick turn, and laughed again to mask the pain as she stuck him in the face repeatedly. "Rembrant has you all deep in his pockets, doesn't he?" He didn't look away or panic as she held her hands to his neck, eventually the other guards pulled her away. He winked at them and turned to the interrogator. "Only twenty-eight more days before the big trial, are you as excited as I am?"

"You think it will go down easily? You are under our mercy child!"

"Cut the charade, you and I both know if you kill me every one of you is a dead man, the best you can do is torture me and try to keep me quiet by threatening Marla and her mother, in hopes to get me to confess falsely, or break me mentally." He cried out in pain as the next blow was into his stomach.

"You're right, we can't kill you, but we'll make you wish we did." The guards took hot pokers from the brazen furnace, turning them to Faris, the tips were heated till they began to glow white. Faris felt the heat on his face, and closed his eyes, calming his breathing. "Alright, let's get this done."

Braxton sat in his cell, he was separated from everyone else because he always hurt his cellmate, the last two had almost died because they decided to challenge his title, he had always been hurt from his scraps, but not like today, he looked at his bandaged arms and hands. The door to his cell opened and someone was thrown in. He turned to see the guards lock the door. After a few minutes he walked over. Whoever it was covered in bandages that only loosely covered his horrific scars and burns. "Angvard almighty, what did you do to get these licks?" He unfurled the hooded blanket to reveal the boy he had fought today. His mind flashed back to their fight. He had been on the backpedal until the boy had stumbled twice, at least, he thought they had been stumbles, he remembered the guards laughing, they had leaked rumors about what the boy did, and what he did was the worst. Unless they were lies, all of the inmates he subdued were attacked in nonlethal nonfatal locations. And even when the boy had him on the offensive his knife never went near his face or neck. Then there was the fact the boy used magic, if he could use magic always, he could have killed them all easily. He remembered a state mage effortlessly drop a band of bandits. "Hell, even if he couldn't, he definitely could have dropped me." He sighed, they probably dumped him here to be killed, so that they could blame it on him, he was combat prone but he wasn't an idiot. He walked over to his cot and picked up a thin blanket, it provided little comfort but it was better than freezing to death. He looked out at the moon, was only a sliver, but that was larger than it had been yesterday. He tossed the blanket onto the boy, covering him as best he could.

Faris first noticed that he was in a different cell. Then he noticed the man he had fought the day before, he was sleeping in a corner of the room, Faris looked around, and looked at himself, he was covered in a blanket. He tried to get up, immediately regretting it as pain racked his body. He peered down his shirt, solemnly looking away as he closed his eyes, he wouldn't have the magic to fix all the damage so he'd have to heal the essentials. _I just need to be able to stand up and move again._ He slowly worked on himself, the task going by slowly, as he did so he heard the older man stir in his sleep, waking up some thirty minutes later.

"You are awake?" He asked gruffly.

Faris took a bit of time to find the words to answer, still deep in concentration, "…yes… I, I'm awake."

The man nodded, leaning up against the wall. "Did you kill those twenty-five men?"

Faris nodded, "Yes, yes I did."

"In cold blood?"

He closed his eyes, "In a sense, I guess you could say that, I had a good long while with them in my mercy, and I could have done a great many things to subdue them… but I instead killed them."

The man laughed, "What did they do to wrong you?"

"Nothing to me personally, but they hurt a great many people, do you want to hear?"

The man nodded, "I have a feeling it will be an interesting story…"

Faris and Braxton walked towards the mess hall for breakfast, as the rest of the inmates filed in, they were surprised to see Faris walking by the large man with neither of them betraying any animosity, if they still shared any. As they sat to eat a few more inmates gathered in the seats by them, a few glaring daggers at Faris still.

"How are you gents doing?" He asked jovially, watching as a guard brought him a special meal compared to the rest of the inmates. "Oh? Wow I can smell the drug in this, did you quadruple the dosage?" He took a bite and felt the toxin beginning to fog his mind and slow his movements. He turned to Braxton, "Hey there…" He slurred, "I don't think they like me very much." He returned to his food, eating it, as he was about to take a sip of water an inmate swiped his cup and began to chug it, but not before he spit it out in disgust. "Yuperino!" He smiled, "Anti-magic drugs! I was wondering when they'd feed me again, left me to rot for 2 whole days, I guess they thought I'd crack under starvation, though nice of them to let me heal before taking my magic away. He turned to the guards who glared at him angrily. "Can I get more water; I have a splitting headache and it's not just the drugs."

Another inmate slid him a glass. "Here, it's not much but it should hold you over."

Faris thanked him, chugging it eagerly. They ate in silence, after the meal was completed, they were taken out into the filed for "leisure" again. Faris chose to stay near a wall, too exhausted to do anything more.

"Move it prisoner!" A guard ran up to him and clubbed him on the head. "All inmates must keep active."

"Fine!" Faris trudged forward, limping across a small track. "I hope my friends are doing alright."

The first-year pearls awoke and followed their same schedule, of 6 hours of monotonous physical training and combat, followed by lunch, then a return to normal classes, then supper, then strict curfew, they all shared in Venka's stoic expression and unwillingness to cause trouble despite the provocation. Only twice did this façade break, and both times being when a student insulted Faris. At this point the students took great pleasure in insulting them in any way they could, avoiding anything physical unless a teacher was available. This trend continued for another week and a half until an incident occurred.

"Where do you think you're going?!" A student jeered at Venka, he was the one who confronted them in the beginning, and emboldened by their passive behavior decided he wanted to take things up a notch, he had gathered a posse of friends and compatriots, as well as students who had grievances against those pearls, and ganged up on the 4 when the teachers weren't available, trash, spoiled food, and nasty words were hurled their way as they made their way down the hall. Soon they found themselves blocked by this massive group of 50+ students. "I said where are you going?! Or are you so cowardly intelligent tongue fled your mouths?" The students laughed alongside his words.

"Perhaps they think they're in some way cool for being so stoic."

"Or perhaps they realize they're in the wrong and are finally acting their station." A student reached over and pushed Nya, she found it impossible to even get her to so much as budge as the girl continued to stare forward impassively.

"Can we go now?" She turned to look at the student, who shrunk back fearfully.

"You can go when we're good and ready!" Another student jeered, throwing a rotten tomato at her. Nya kept her mouth closed as she wiped the rotting juice off her face. The students had gotten dangerously closer. Her mouth had begun to turn. "Guys, I'm beginning to lose patience."

"We just need to hold on for another two and a half weeks, and it will be over." Morgan replied, blocking an egg from beaning his face, he barely held back a grimace as he smelt the stink of rotten egg permeate the area.

"When this is over, I'll remember all of your faces." Katya's face was blank, but her voice showed a hint of malice.

The students, bristled by this challenge began issuing deeper threats and insults, eventually one got the courage to cast a spell to attack them, and was immediately knocked out in a flash of black. The students gasped as standing in front of them was Seya.

"Well, what a cowardly mob you are, acting this way just because they won't fight back."

"But they committed a crime!" One of the students cried out defiantly, only to be slapped hard in the face by Seya.

"True, but aren't they being punished?"

"But they aren't receiving the true punishment!"

Seya laughed, "Please, let me ask you a question, would you really accept losing your magic forever? You realize that it's a rare punishment, only reserved for those who kill other mages or citizens, unlawful use of magic has other punishments. And you all know that." She narrowed her eyes, "Besides, they are my teammates, and you are insulting them, that means you are challenging us correct?" The students quieted. "I'll remember all your faces, so you best stop."

"Oh yeah?!" The leader retorted, "There are over 50 of us!"

"And there are over one hundred of us." A voice called out, they all turned to see Bartholomew, munching on an apple. Behind him were over one hundred student mages from various guilds. "I feel a 2 on 1 matchup is a bit fairer than a 5 to one matchup, wouldn't you say?" He smiled, taking another bite. He waited until the group of 50 dispersed before he turned to the students he towed along. "You can leave now, expect your pay in your deposits in two days, if it's not there, message me."

"Bartholomew?" Venka asked, surprised, "Why are you helping us? I thought you weren't cheap."

The large boy shrugged, "You lot are entertaining, and my uncle has a bone to pick with Rembrant, when Morgan came to our company with insider information, we decided we'd lend aid, we've got a man in that prison anyway, once that guy gets out with evidence of infractions, Rembrant is as good as dead and Faris would be saved."

Nya turned to Morgan, who smiled, "I have quite a few contacts, and this one is really close to Rembrant's inner circle."

"But won't the case happen in a month?" Nya asked.

"Due to _'further evidence being uncovered'_ Faris will be delayed his case another month, then another, and another, until he pleads guilty, dies, or is irrefutably proven innocent. Unfortunately, Faris isn't innocent, but he has extenuating circumstance which would have him acquitted that would be thrown out if he pleads guilty." He finishes the apple, throwing it into a saucer.

Venka's face warped to that of white rage "I'm going to…"

"I wouldn't do anything hasty; you are still on thin ice." Bartholomew shook his head, "Morgan has trustworthy contacts, he told us that tonight an information exchange was going on, one of the members has a copy of all of Rembrant's forged ledgers and tax documents, most aristocrats have ones drawn to keep their real wealth and assets a secret."

"If we get a hand on the forgery, we can find out where it's printed based on the specific coding, then we break in and get access to the real documents, as they would have to be used in order to forge these ones." Morgan smiled, "Once we have that, we can see whether Rembrant really ordered the assassinations, and also look into his taking care of his parts of the city and countryside, once we do, we can strike him with corruption charges, and completely destroy him politically.

"With him politically ruined his backers will pull out, he'd have no choice but to default and file bankruptcy on his property. Then my uncle can buy out his company, and boom, Faris's trial is quickened, and the judge is either neutral or in Faris's favor, a few newspapers here and there, and the monster becomes a hero due to the nature of the men he subdued." Bartholomew smiled.

"But, that's stupid, why do we have to go through all of that?" Venka began, "If we have reason to believe he's not being fair, why do we have to play by the rules?"

"Because we have the power and responsibility to play by the rules, no matter how noble, not playing by the rules is what got your boyfriend into this problem." Bartholomew reached into his pocket for his second apple. "And because if we go about it this way, we don't have to worry about upending the system and dividing the aristocrats, if we just violently took out Rembrant they'd be split, but if we prove he is both legally and morally inept his allies would have no way to stand by him, thus putting him in our mercy in a legal and easy way."

Venka folded her arms, "It still seems a bit too much."

"It would be, if not for the fact that Rembrant is the leader of the anti-mage faction of the government, if he is taken out violently by a mage, especially a mage as powerful as any of us, it would merely make him a martyr for their cause, and Faris would become the first victim of stricter laws." Morgan smiled sadly, "I'm sorry Venka, we'll try to complete this before the month is over."

She nodded, "Fine, but if it goes wrong, damn the law…"


	49. Chapter 49

"Ah? A Surdan? It's a long way from Surda, what are you doing?"

Bergan laughed, "My wife and I are actually on an errand for a merchant friend of ours down in Surda, he's a fan of northern mead from the capital."

The soldier laughs, "Yup! Our mead's probably the best or my name isn't Samuel Ninterock! You'll probably try it with your beautiful wife!" He laughed some more with Bergan.

Haya for her part kept a faint smile on her face, a smile that remained until they left the soldier's earshot.

"Damn fool… wasting our time like this."

"Haya…" Bergan chided, "Calm down, if we lose our senses, we'll hurt ours and Faris's chances."

He squeezed his wife's hand tenderly. "We have to be brave for him." She leaned into him, smiling.

"OOOH! That's a comely woman over there!"

"…ignore their catcalling."

"Hey… southerner! How about you get lost so we can talk to the pretty lady!"

Bergan felt someone poke him in the back. Sighing he turned, then looked down at the beefy man, he was a scarred, ugly fellow, and obviously drunk, with his flushed face, slurred voice, and sluggish movements. "Hello sir, let's not have trouble, my wife and I have had a long trip, so we just want to enjoy the beauty of this city."

"Beauty?!" The man laughed, then smashed the bottle on the ground. "The only beauty I see is the one standing behind the idiot in a cloak.

Sighing, Haya walked up to the man, and smashed her fist on the space between the base of his neck and shoulder. He howled in pain, silencing the onlookers. As the man collapsed Haya looked at the onlookers. "Alright Bergan, **let's** go."

Bergan shook his head, smiling lightly. "No love lost with this city or it's denizens, you'd have simply smiled and left if it was a drunken trader back home." He smirked, "Then again," he mused, "I would have broken his nose if you hadn't knocked him out."

"Let's just find your old friend."

"He's your friend too you know."

Haya snorted, "Gurant? He treated me like a father-in-law treated their soon to be son."

"Does that make me the bride to be?" Bergan smiled, "Gurant can be difficult, but our relationship when we were all first acquainted wasn't the best."

"Don't remind me, I was… an awful person back then."

Bergan hugged his wife. "I fell in love with you as you changed, perhaps more so because of how you started."

They made their way to the blacksmith's district.

"I can't believe it, the city has changed so much, but this location's still the same…" They walked up to a shop.

"And it's as dirty as ever… or… dirtier." Haya muttered. They flinched as a loud boom erupted from within the shop.

Panicking, Bergan sprinted out into shop. "Old man! Old man!" He called out.

"Huh! What?! I told you not to disturb me anymore!" Behind a cloud of smoke, a grizzled old man emerged. He peered at Bergan in surprise. "Bergan?!" Bergan smiled in relief.

"It looks like you're alright."

"Alright?!" The old man roared, "I'm better than alright! I perfected the formula!"

"Formula?" Haya asked, perplexed.

"Oh! You brought her too… well, that's fine, what brings you over, you never right, I though you forgot about this old man."

Bergan scratched his head. "Sorry master Gurant, I didn't want to endanger you."

"Yeah, If I was worried about the Varden I wouldn't have accepted you and her into my home the first time." Gurant smirked, "I spent my life working for the Varden, if I couldn't live at my own discretion, I would have nothing to live for."

"So… what were you working on?" Haya asked, "I hope you weren't trying to kill yourself."

The old man laughed, "Rather, if I'm getting a heart attack, it will be when my favorite customer comes in with another design to challenge me with. That boy is so full of ideas, he would make a great apprentice."

"Who… who was that boy?" Haya asked.

Bergan thought about it, then peered at the couple. "Actually, like if you two had a son."

"When did you last see him!" Haya demanded, approaching the old man with an accusatory finger.

"Wait! Wait Haya!" Bergan stood in front of her, "You know how Gurant is! He probably didn't even know."

"Know what?" Gurant asked.

"My son's been arrested for crimes he hasn't committed, no thanks to you!"

"That boy was your son?" Gurant widens his eyes, "He's Faris Ser?" He shakes his head, "That boy really is peculiar." He puts on a thick cloak. "Follow me."

"Where?" Bergan asked.

"My home, there's some people you may want to meet."

As they made their way towards Gurant's home, they overheard citizens speaking to each other. "Did you hear about the boy who slayed all those children?" One said. "Yes, I heard that, I heard he burned their corpses but left their heart for some profane ritual." "Disgusting." Another muttered, "I heard he had weak magical ability and sacrificed other children to gain power." The first speaker quipped, "Who's to say he's even a child, what if it's an old witch, absorbing the youth of children."

"Haya…" Bergan warned, even as he felt his hand move to his dagger.

"Well, regardless, he's in the hands of the law, and if justice is right, we'll see him hung by the week's end."

"We should burn his corpse after, you don't know how a witch like him might again rise."

Gurant roared in laughter. "My goodness, people like to gossip like idiots." People looked at him with suspicion and anger.

"What's it to you, old man?!"

"Oh, nothing, I just wonder, what would you say if you were wrong? And the boy was innocent?"

"Pfft… what does that matter, something or someone still abused their magic, that child would be released and free to practice magic at his leisure, while the rest of us struggle to put food on the table with real work." This was followed by a few muttered agreements from the others in their conversation.

"I'll hold you to those words." Haya said, as she glared at the man. He looked like he was going to say something, but a glare from Bergan caused him to look away.

"Tsk!"

Gurant and Faris's parents walked up the stares of a dilapidated building.

"You could have moved Gurant. Why do you still live here, you should make a good amount of money."

"True, but I don't want to be any further from my forge, besides, I had made renovations, in case a certain fool and his wife ever visited me. Funny how their son came to pay respects first. As it is, I had two free rooms, now I only have 1 free room. I don't know if you know my 'guests', but they know Faris apparently." He harrumphs as he opens the door. Despite the dirty exterior, the inside of Gurant's home was clean, very clean. Inside the room two children, a boy with dirty blonde hair and a girl with pure white hair, were playing. In the room quietly eating and conversing was a short-blonde woman and a black-haired, tired looking woman. The black-haired woman's fingers were bandaged, as were two of the fingers of the white-haired girl. The two women looked at Faris's parents, recognition slowly dawning as they approached them quickly and fell to their knees.

"Huh?! What?!" Bergan was taken aback.

"I… I'm so sorry, it's all my fault, it's all my fault what happened to your son" The black-haired woman exclaimed as tears began to fall from her face.

"Explain." Haya demanded, eyes turning cold.

"Actually…" A voice interrupted them. Walking into the room was a violet eyed teenager. "I think it's best if I explained." Elva said. At her side, Solembum in his humanoid form looked at the members of the room.

"Where's Angela." Haya demanded.

"She's getting help…"

In a quite round room sat two figures.

"I'm surprised you came here yourself Witch."

"I'm surprised you'd bare yourself before me, alone." Angela responded. "Tell me Jaya, why is your daughter not with you?"

Lord Jaya regarded Angela with his sharp, hawk like eyes before sighing, "She has become smitten with the boy this entire city's gone into a fuss about."

"Has she?" Angela raised an eyebrow. "I must confess, that is surprising, when you beseeched me for help after your foolish blunder, she was just a monster, craving blood and the pain of others. Such to the point that you've adjusted yourself to be able to still love and care for her. And now here she is, falling in love like a young maiden. How does the boy in question feel?"

"That's irrelevant. What does matter is the freedom of every mage in this city and nation."

"Does it? This feels more political than anything else." Angela sat back, "Faris is framed for a crime he didn't commit, and made an example and scape goat of, because he belongs to no faction yet, and has no real ties to royalty or nobility. Just being friends with those related to the nobility have nothing to do with him as a person, and thus unless he was marrying into a family, which his mother would disagree with immediately, he has no protection." She pointed to Jaya, "If you stepped forward to defend him, and put yourself at risk." He would socially be in your debt, regardless of his true guilt or innocence, and it would be unseemly for him to publicly go against you."

Jaya smiled, "As shrewd as ever, except I didn't frame him. Rembrant did."

"That magic fearing idiot?" Angela groaned.

Lord Jaya frowned. "Rembrant has a deep distaste for Faris born from when his son tried to kill him."

"Rembrant's… son tried to kill Rembrant?"

"You know who I'm talking about!" Jaya snapped. "As it is, Rembrant discovered a soldier garrison that was home to a gang of child traffickers. Enough evidence was gathered to determine that hundreds of children had died in there, and that Faris had entered there and killed men, their argument was that Faris was somehow under their employ, and as ridiculous as that sounds, Faris did something absolutely moronic."

"Which was?"

"He didn't report it. To anyone, He didn't report his findings, there are at least two dozen men at large who were partially responsible for those children's deaths, and yet we don't know where they are, or who they are, only that they are in the slums, and given that the majority of victims are in the slums, only a callous idiot would purge those areas, and I've already politically destroyed the bastards who'd even think of that sort of foolishness. Rather though, the woman of the ring leader and his daughter were captured, money being traced back to money extorted from the slums, and when the people couldn't pay, their children were taken." Jaya sighed, "The moron should have either killed them all and washed his hands, or captured them all and allow them to face condemnation, but he decided to be compassionate it seems." He handed Angela a paper. "Discounting Uglauw, the ring leader, everyone Faris killed was reported to either have no family or to have committed the worst of the crimes, while the others he let go, most of whom we don't have clear images of even with mind-reading the one idiot who turned himself in. And that idiot, who's the only word against Faris as he's in jail, states Faris was aware of the child trafficking plan, was part of the pay, and was simply tying up loose ends."

Angela lowered the notes, "All before he went unto a duel with Rembrant's son, nearly ending up with the boy and his squad being expelled, stripped of magic, then executed, then Rembrant being humiliated." She laughed, "And you mean to tell me the people believe this?"

"A person is intelligent, normally, but people have lives to live, and if they already fear what a mage can do, the idea that a child could slay two dozen men, despite what those men were, is terrifying." He closed his eyes and massaged his temple. "The worst is probably the fact that I don't fully understand what Rembrant's final goal is. If it was simply destruction of mage society. He needn't frame Faris, the boy faces an uphill battle defending the fact he killed citizens, criminal citizens, but citizens, without even a provisional state mage license or a warrant for investigation."

Angela sighed, Faris was likely still saddled with his guilt over Venka's parents, given what she was reading and what Rembrant stated, the school had heard his warnings of the gang, but he had still respected their rules keeping him from leaving premises for one month. "So… Rembrant," She began, "When he stated that he believed the extorters were dangerous elements, why didn't you act, or move it to the guards?"

Rembrant raised an eyebrow, "I did, it was handled by…" He paused, then grinned. "Bastards…"


	50. Chapter 50

"I'm certain you don't know what this is…"

"Burrowing grub, used by Galbatorix and his agents in torture, from Vroengaurd, it leaps into smaller grubs when it feeds, they respond to orders in the ancient language."

"…"

"Can we get on with it? I already know the injuries they cause are not fixable by healing."

Faris's new injuries in today's torture session were less intense than the sessions earlier, he had been hit with another severe dosage of anti-magic drugs, so he had assumed it was because they needed him alive now that he'd earned the relatively good graces of the prisoners and thus couldn't be killed off that way. They had tried solitary confinement for a week but it had proven ineffective, Faris had sat against a wall, starving himself to allow his magic to return to heal himself and to put on a ghost of a light so tiny it drained less energy than he recovered through light resting. He inspected his room and made out the dimensions before cutting off the light. Satisfied, he waited for his next meal. His wounds from the burrow grubs were by now dull aches, he was used to such pain by now, his fingertips had healed from the damage, he'd have to wait for the nails to grow back though, without the magic to spare to accelerate its growth it would take 6 months, a whole year and a half for his toenails. Closing his eyes, he didn't know when he fell asleep, or that a pair of bright green eyes peered at him.

"_So, how did our little Damien do?" A dark-skinned handsome man with close cropped curly hair and a curt beard was fastening his tie to his shirt, he put on a stylish suit jacket as he turned to his wife, a woman in a dazzling red dress, she had two attendants, one working on her wavy black curls, and the other on her nails, she herself applied on makeup._

"_The servants say that he achieved first placing in the math placement exam for his school, and third for the nation."_

"_Only third?"_

"_I was flabbergasted as well darling." The woman frowned, mashing her lips together to get the lipstick applied evenly. "I didn't think our boy would allow himself to slip."_

"_What would a fitting punishment be?"_

_The man pondered for a bit, "What was that stupid thing he enjoyed doing?"_

_A servant piped up, "Oh the video games? Yes, young master Damien has taken a shining to the pass-time, he pooled his 15-minute leisure time a day into a one-hour forty-five-minute session on Saturday."_

"_I see, what did he request removed from the schedule to have that happen?"_

"_It seemed he got rid of the ten-minute rest sessions in between his language and philosophy course, reducing them to 3 minutes each."_

"_That's still only 85 minutes accounted for, where does he gain the other twenty minutes."_

"_Don't you remember dear? He's 14 now, so we extended his curfew another 30 minutes. He now goes to bed at 8:30 sharp."_

_The man nodded, "I see, how's he doing in his other courses?"_

"_He has gotten the hang of equestrianism and swimming, his fencing instructor states he is talented, but that he sometimes deviates form and slips into the martial stances from his eastern studies instructor, so he needs to learn to differentiate those for each course. His language teachers state he's showing great enthusiasm learning the different languages, and the coding professor states he's made some head way into teaching the boy C#"_

_A servant spoke up, "He also made the dean's list for mathematics."_

_The man chuckled, "Even after only achieving third?" He mused, "Well we don't have time to talk to him, we have dinner with the Senator in an hour. Take it away."_

"_The video games sir? Excellent idea, he'd be better off spending his leisure time doing-"_

"_No, I mean remove leisure time, it was wise of him to reschedule a large partition like that, reschedule his math tutor, have him come on Saturday's now as well."_

"_Sir?"_

"_I did not stutter, no son of mine will be satisfied with third place."_

_The servant bowed and turned to leave. Faris watched the entire thing through the tiny camera on the toy car he programmed. As the servant turned to leave, he merely sat in bed, he had dreaded this the second he heard the news, he had achieved a perfect score but had failed the second extra credit question, which had been a question about a popular movie. His eyes blurred as he remembered the question: 'What is a recurring catchphrase in the Star Wars original and new Trilogy, often used to wish someone good luck.' He hadn't been allowed to watch most movies rowing up, he had only barely been able to gain the permission to play video games. He sat back against the bed, angry and humiliated as he waited for the servants to come in and confiscate his systems._

"That was a dumb memory…" Faris chuckled to himself, he'd really been a pansy growing up, he hadn't had the spine to tell them the question he had gotten wrong was a current even extra credit, the math instructor had found out after some prodding and relayed the information to his father and mother, who then had him watch every movie considered an acclaimed classic or that had a decent cult following, after watching the movie he had been forced to write essays summarizing it, identifying key themes, and identifying what characters said whatever iconic phrase. He would have grown to despise the movies if not for the fact they offered him a short escape from his rigid life. Through these movies he also realized that many people would likely rather live the way he does. But he couldn't judge for himself, as he had only one experience. Though now, in this dark and cold place, injured and weak, he was somewhat split fifty-fifty between that and his old life.

_Human kit, are you alright?_

Faris snapped his head upwards, through extremely thin slates he saw someone peering at him.

_Solembum?_

_Who else would it be? The president?_

Faris chuckled, _that's an unfair joke, you know I could very much do with one of those presidential pardons._

_You are in quite a quagmire, men and women run the streets decrying your name, and Rumors of the crimes have even reached your parents._

_Shit, how are my parents?_

_One of my cousins was once dumped into a barrel of cold water by a pair of drunk soldiers who mistook his sleeping form for a particularly large yet simple house cat, the level of wrath displayed by him on that day as he exacted his revenge is but a candle to the fury of your mother, they are only held back by the delicacy of the situation, and hope on the fact that the people's minds could be changed due to an almost equal rising advocacy group going about speaking to the people about the truth of the matter._

Faris sat up. _The truth?_

_There is a mounting suspicion that the human you all seem to dislike may have had a bigger hand in this situation than you may have realized._

Faris shook his head, _that would explain some things yes, anyways, how are you? And how are Angela and Elva._

_Angela and Elva are both fine, Angela is confident you would still be sane, Elva is a little worried, while she is given the ability to see other's from experiencing pain, she doesn't know how to do the same for herself, and her foresight only goes so far, so she yet does not know the best outcome, as pain will come to a great many number no matter who wins this political debacle. _Solembum licked his paw. _As for me? I am cold, miserable, and annoyed, Elva chose to not mention it was going to rain heavily today when she helped me sneak into the prison._

Faris grinned, he and Solembum continued to speak with each other whenever Solembum returned, Faris spent the time in-between the sessions exercising in some way, they had to make sure he ate well for the drugs to take their full toll, and he had already proven that he was willing to subject himself to time without his magic. Whenever Solembum returned they'd talk, trade tales they've picked up, or regaled each other tales of previous battles.

_More than your combat ability, I'd like to see how your cooking improved, you took over the making of the oatmeal, and you did quite well, I would like to try your fillet mignon dish._

_Of course, as soon as I get out._ Faris smiled. _How many days has it been?_

_It has been 9 more days; you have about 2 weeks left._

_Oh? That's longer than I thought._ Faris smiled, _Thanks for staying for so long, I gather it's time for you to leave?_

_I'm planning on helping your fellow den mates find the papers that lead to your innocence._

_And who says cats are unfeeling._ Faris joked. _Good luck out there and try not to get anyone killed._

_I'm sure your friends are capable of taking care of themselves, unless you mean…_

_Yeah, I mean the poor shmucks hired to guard whatever it is._

Solembum's mind did not hide its amusement as the cat leapt up and out of the covered ditch. He ran through the streets; the only ones out now would be night watch guards and drunk men and women enjoying the anonymity of the dark. He continued down the wide cobbled streets, taking in the various smells that flooded the streets, he'd need to bathe himself after this was over.

"How is he?" He turned to the group in front of him. Six human youths stood kneeled beside him, the tallest, a blond human had a grim look as he asked.

_He's alive, they've tortured him, but he's able to stand, sit, and eat, his mind shows signs he's been drugged heavily, but he shows high resilience. He wishes you all good luck and to take care._

Morgan smiled, "That's good." He turned to the rest of his friends, "Do you all have the plan memorized?"

They nodded, Nya for herself looked at Morgan with new eyes and respect, she had known he was a strong mage, likely more skilled in casting and utilizing spells in general than she was. But he had truly taken charge when they began formulating a plan.

_Eight individuals sat on a bed, it belonged to their friend, who was currently jailed. They were debating how to best approach the situation. The capture of the forgery went off without a hitch, Venka easily captured and silenced them with magic, and Seya was a likely more effective interrogator than Faris, she was at least a more skilled mental duelist. They traced the forgery document to an old lord's manor; it had been repurposed into a publishing house._

"_I didn't think you would have known, seeing as you're technically still a country bumpkin." Bartholomew smiled, chowing down on one of Faris's cakes. "This is delicious, it would be a crime to keep that boy locked up." He savored the sweetness._

"_Okay, so what is this publishing house?"_

"_Each guild has smaller divisions and guilds within the larger complex, the publishing houses are groups of 20-30 mages who work together with a group of weaker mages and nonmagical users. They go about collecting information and publishing them, as well as collecting manuscripts from authors of fiction and nonfiction works, reprinting them on uniform and neat sheets of paper with magic, it's a much faster production than hand drawing each and every word and picture. Lady Nasuada believes the people have a right to information quickly, so a portion of the taxes is put into a group, who then oversee which publishing houses gain access to the funds, due to how cheap it is to publish, most publishing houses with a decent amount of mages are able to keep ahead, especially due to the fact that many larger merchant businesses pay for spaces on the larger newspapers in order to advertise their guilds in order to attract customers and new apprentices." Morgan turned to Bartholomew, "If you are going to help us you better be respectful about it."_

"_What's really important though is the fact that this particular publishing house is the Iron Caste association, they were the first company to publish papers about Faris, they are a predominantly anti-mage corporation. They are known for provocative hit pieces on many notable mages, my uncle was set back because of them." Bartholomew ignored Morgan's glare, turning to Venka, he continued, "If we can find the real documents, that's a lot of opponents now under our mercy."_

"_I don't care, I just want to save Damien." Venka continued, "Okay, so we just bust in, take it, and go."_

"_No can do, we have to sneak in, take it without anyone noticing, then sneak out safely. If the guards catch wind and apprehend even one of us, it would be really easy for them to argue that we attempted to sabotage them, and we'd end up in a similar limbo as Faris. We also cannot damage their property or hurt their personnel; such actions will merely fuel the anti-magic sentiment."_

"_Why can't we just say this is a forgery in the ancient language?"_

"_Because we say that merely because we believe it to be true, we don't know for certain, this could be a way to throw us off." Morgan said, "And they can easily hire someone, tell them that it is real, then tell them to announce in the ancient language that it is real, most people don't understand all the nuances of the ancient language so just saying something in it doesn't always bring the truth." He pulled out a map, "My contact got this for us, it shows us exactly what to watch out for, that they know of, and what we can do to bypass it, the room before the room full of tax documents is a blind zone, so we'll have to prepare for that." He turned to Alanna and Dusan, "Sorry, I'm going to have to ask that you can't come with us, I need you here for the most important part of this entire thing." The twins nodded._

Nya still marveled at Morgan's thinking, the hallway was bugged with a tracking crystal, so it would notice them leave, but the bathroom did not have such an item. Bartholomew had prepared the perfect tools for the job, first he walked in and put down 6 clay dolls, placing in 8 mana crystals charged by Venka he turned them into life-size dolls. He then molded them to look like the first-year pearls, in order to do that they used the fairths and full body sketches Faris had done for each of them. They would then enter the room one at a time in order to fully calibrate the dummy to their movement, all while pretending to play a card game, eventually it got to Alanna and Dusan, who took care of three dummies each, casting illusions on them to fully look like and move like normal people. Once that occurred Venka walked in, turned invisible, and the fake Venka walked out and started playing in her place, over the course of an hour each student walked in and their replacement walked out, once they were all gathered in the room Venka set a timed barrier that blocked light, heat, and sound from escaping or entering it, grabbing her friends she teleported them outside, right into the middle of the forest, from there they gathered the tools and supplies they smuggled away in order to make this trip and worked their way back into the city. This is where they met up with Solembum.

"Remember, in five minutes the guard shift will occur, giving us a 20-minute window to get in and out." Morgan smiled grimly as his friends nodded. "Let's go then."

The first wave of defense was an alarm spell littered around the grounds, even the slightest movement triggered it and it had a ward that kept all living creatures from even attempting to enter it.

"There…" Seya pointed towards a statue of a dragon in the center, it had dulled red eyes. "Those crystals contain the magic keeping this ward up, destroying them will end the ward, but they'll trigger another alarm when that occurs."

"That's where I come in." Bartholomew took out another clay doll, "this little guy can touch a crystal and change its enchantment, courtesy of the newest batch of research into the ancient language and enchanting tools. The stuff is stupid expensive and really hard to make, so there's no reason to use it in a duel. Of course, getting it to there still takes magic, and there's the whole movement thing, that crystal probably has a solid barrier as well.

"That's where I come in." Nya took out her arrow, it had runes of speed and accuracy and piercing on it, and it glowed slightly with its spell piercing ability, "I call it my ward piercing arrow, can bypass the detection of a ward and hit its target before they even know I was in the same city." She grinned, taking the doll and tying it to the blunt arrowhead, stringing her bow she pulled back, adjusting her arrow slightly to account for extra weight and wind pressure. They had already practiced for this so she was ready. She fired off with a magically muted twang, striking the statue in the right eye, immediately the clay surrounded the crystals, a dull grey shifting back into the dull red. Immediately the group ran in, using the bushes and low walls as cover as they reached the eastern wall. Venka lifted the group into the air using magic, and they slowly made their way up to the top floor with a damaged window.

"Alright…" Katya closed her eyes, a few seconds later she gave the go ahead as the window silently slid open, the group carefully flew in, not touching the floor Morgan lit the room with a were light. The pale yellow illuminated what seemed to be the ink room, the group flew towards the exit, just as it flew open and a guard walked in. He peered around the seemingly empty room, face near Morgan's panicked, invisible face. After a few more seconds the guard shrugged and closed the door, it stopped just short and emulated the door shutting sound through Seya, who took the lead as they hovered out.

_Remember, stick together, know your role._

They continued to bypass alert after alert, making their way down the building until they reached ground floor, then the basement, then the level below that led to the room full of documents. The cavern was large, big enough for them to fit a house in. In the center of the room was a large metal statue in the shape of an odd-looking knight, his torso was too long, the limbs were too long, and they were segmented into three joints instead of the normal one elbow joint.

"What is that?" Venka asked curiously.

"Whatever it is I'd rather not deal with it. Bartholomew, do you recognize it?" Morgan turned to the fat boy, who shook his head.

"I don't sense any enchantments either."

"Then I'll just destroy it, Venka, cut off any connections to above." Venka nodded, casting her spell. Nya cast a large fireball, she marveled at its size, it was greater and stronger than what she used to be able to conjure, and even though she put more energy into it, it wasn't as draining as it used to be, she launched it towards the statue, which began to glow a dark green and chant in a deep voice. The air exploded around them as a field of green energy began to overtake the floor and ceiling,

"M-magic jamming…" Bartholomew whispered.

"What?!" Morgan tried casting a spell, but nothing happened.

"The Golden horde has a type of weapon that can bypass a mage's wards and spells, it's really rare, maybe one in one million of their troupes have it, but apparently the enemy count had reached one hundred million, and continued to rise. He said one could no longer cast spells but any spells or enchantments they had before the being cast its field would be ongoing. Of course, conjured spells like flames, or levitating items would also end."

The knight began contorting oddly as several spikes jutted from its back, like an outward spine, it reached its spindly hands back and pulled out two of the spikes, revealing wicked looking swords glowing the same ominous dark green.

"Those weapons can pierce through our wards."

"How do we beat it?!" Nya pulled out her bow, Katya pulled out her sword, Morgan took out his spear, and Venka took out a dagger. Seya for her part merely slipped the spiked knuckles unto her gauntlet, brandishing them fiercely.

"They have a power core somewhere in their body, until it is destroyed, they will continue to put themselves back together." Bartholomew took out a large shield and tossed out a few clay dolls, which swelled in size before clumping together and forming a large vicious looking cat with razor sharp long claws and elongated fangs. A second clump formed what appeared to be a winged woman, wielding a sword of stone with glowing blue runes covering it, an air of cold covered her, while heat radiated from the cat. The group faced the knight, who had stood to its full height, a good 20 feet tall, thin and spindly, and extremely terrifying looking as it cocked its head at them. The first person to break the standoff was Venka, who launched two armor piercing arrows in rapid tandem with each other, the first one stabbing the knight in the head, the second one piercing and severing its thin right arm. The broken pieces began to reform, but not before Seya leapt forward, hair glowing white as her fist slammed into the monster's torso. It broke apart even more but Seya had to contort her body in the air as several spikes emanating from the creature's warped and torn metal stomach shot up to skewer her. She smacked a few away as she landed, retreating quickly just as Morgan, Katya, and Venka charged forward towards the monster. It wordlessly opened its visor, and a black liquid spewed out, the three dodged it barely as the acid hissed and bubbled on the floor.

"Don't want to get hit by that…" Katya murmured annoyed as she blocked the sword swing the creature launched at her, letting it slip past she shifted her stance to allow Morgan to leap over her and stab his spear into the being's neck, the metal warped toughly, but right before it opened its mouth Morgan touched his crystal on his wrist to the crystal on the spear, a torrent of lightning pushed out between before shocking the creature, Morgan cursed in pain as he dropped the spear, his hands smoking and blackened. Katya ran to his aid just as the creature leapt towards them, only to be slammed in the side as if struck by a giant, crashing into the wall. They turned to see Venka run towards them, lifting her hand as the dagger flew back towards it, before lowering it rapidly and yelping as the knife nearly cut off her fingers and clattered a few feet away.

"The enchantments work, but we normally make them so loose, just so that we can control the finer points with magic directly." Morgan picked himself up and ran towards his spear. "It's interfering with our active spells!" The knight was in the middle of trying to put itself together while defending itself from the combined prowess of the flaming big cat and icy Valkyrie, one half of it kept melting at parts under the intense heat, and the other kept slowing and stalling due to the very air freezing over at times when the Valkyrie swung her frozen sword. Bartholomew ran up to them, huffing.

"I think I know where the core is!" He winced as his flaming golem was cut in half, and as the frozen one lost one of her wings, Nya was continuously firing arrow after arrow whenever she got a clear shot, into one joint, then another, slowing and jamming it as best she could. Seya had leapt back into the fray, striking and ripping whenever she had the opportunity to, as one point when the creature opened its visor she leapt to its back and forced it shut, a weird scream emanated from the thing as the hot dark liquid splashed back into itself. It shook Seya off, knocking her in the shoulder with its blade. It leapt back eyeing the group cautiously as its body tried to fully reform, but they didn't let up their attacks. Katya had now leapt back in; it was much slower than before now and its spikes did not reach as far as it missed so much of its mass. A part of its arm lay uselessly by the entrance, too far to call back apparently. Even then it still tried to reach out for it, even while attacking and defending itself.

"Make way!" Venka sprinted forward and threw her dagger at the creature's chest, it tore open much like before, and again like before it attempted to stab whoever was closest, the closest person happened to be the cold golem, who took the attack with its final wing and both arms. Bartholomew shouted an order and the golem immitted more of the cold than before, freezing the metal to its body, immobilizing the creature fully. Morgan was right after, stabbing right into the held open gap in the creature, which resembled a cross between a burst pipe and exposed ribs, he aimed for a dark green heart-like metallic piece of metal in its center, stabbing into it he held his crystal to the staff again, this time for a bit longer as the electricity arced out of it. The creature blew back as Morgan landed, hands black and crackling. They all held their breaths as the creature did not move, then breathed a collective sigh of relief as the green runes covering the room disappeared. Katya moved to begin healing Morgan's burns. And Bartholomew walked up to his golems.

"Sheesh, that did a number on you guys, I'm gonna have to step up my enchanting, though, I'm proud." He grinned sheepishly as he cast a spell, reverting the golems into their clay dolls and collecting them. "Acting like you guys can hear me…"

"Well we can hear you Bartholomew… I didn't know you liked playing with dolls." Venka grinned teasingly, the boy merely harrumphed as he turned away. The group began to walk into the room, it was almost as big as the room that held the automaton knight, the only difference being it was filled to the brim with cabinets.

"These are all simple enchantments, just to keep out water, mold, and insects and the like, we can open them.

They began to pour through the files, hours streamed by as they made their way through the files.

"Got it!" Katya said excitedly, the others crowed around her as she held the document labelled: _Rembrant_.

As they compared the records to the forgery, they realized several things had been changed and edited.

"Not only did he hire the assassins, he also bribed the judge and defense team to allow the delay to continue indefinitely."

As they continued to pour through the documents, they saw several payments sent into the slums, about 'vital specimens' as they read through it said,

"_The number of successful specimens in the batch of 175 only numbered 7, 18 of them proved inconclusive, and were immediately terminated, one hundred and fifty were deemed completely unchanged and returned to the specimen acquisition team. The specimen acquisition team were told to do with each batch of the 150 whatever they would like, as long as they were terminated before the month's end. Many took to it enthusiastically, while others needed a bit more coercion in the line of threats or money, luckily it has been done, they have begun collecting more specimens now, and are in the midst of collecting a newly aged batch from their location, We have been strict in requesting that the specimens be prepubescent or in the midst of beginning their change, as those were the only specimens that survived the treatment. The majority of the S. A. T. are unaware of our greater goals, as they should be. Once this is over and done with, I'll be one of the men standing over a new kingdom. Glory to Jahat."_

_Magister 6_

They looked through the documents, and saw another passage written by the same man,

"_Specimen 34 is exemplary, we were given permission to work on her from her father, and he oversaw our work, she was dying of a disease but he believed our work would bear fruit and save her, the results we got were fantastic, but unfortunately she did not survive, her father angrily demanded her corpse, but we argued that she was now our property, safe to say, he escaped with her. If I ever find him, I will be sure to exact my vengeance, his destruction of our lab set us back by nearly 6 months. Specimen 103, 104, and 105 are all coming along nicely, like specimen 34 they were just below eleven years of age, high in magical energy, and of the universal donor blood type. Perhaps the reason all three succeeded was due to their shared genetic similarities. Soon our superior humans will take over, and the world will change for the better. I just need to find a way to replicate the successes unto those of different physical traits. Glory to Jahat."_

_Magister 6_

"What is this?" Morgan looked at the pages in horror.

"_We found traces of Specimen 34, they had found their way to the combat and recon team, I knew the man would betray us, he did not see the glory of Jahat, but no one listened. Jahat in her kindness performed a great miracle, bringing his daughter back. And the fool back-stabbed us and escaped. But it matters little, the seven successful specimens are all nearly as perfect as specimen 34 was, and we have begun to make headway into adding the enhancements into those who don't match the perfect specifications. Soon I shall bask in the glow of immortality and power, and this kingdom and its people will bow before my grace. Glary to Jahat."_

_Magister 6_

"He was a researcher of some kind?" Bartholomew shook his head, "But… experimenting on living creatures with such magics are highly illegal, and an instant death penalty! And almost as bad if the public found out…" They found two more workings.

_I need a new specimen, some fool with too much time on his or her hands intercepted the specimen acquisition team and killed its most enthusiastic members. I at first feared a calculated sabotage but it was just someone with a bleeding heart and ignorance for the passions of science. Lord Rembrant instructed that Lord Jahat stated to leave the matter be, and I chose to listen, though I am keeping tabs. Without the S. A. T. my specimen acquisition goes by slower than normal, my men go into the slums, but without fully understanding the layout they have trouble finding specimens that match my specification, I'm getting tired of dumping useless specimens. As to the successful specimens? I renamed them Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Zeta, Theta, and Eta. Zeta Theta and Eta are the successful specimens 103, 104, and 105 respectfully, and I thought it humorous to name them similar phonetic name. Jahat's wisdom is so great, that she had access to languages unknown to even the wise elves. Alpha is specimen 67, she is extremely precocious, but eager to learn and powerful, the perfect leader of the squad. Beta makes an adequate second in command, and is the only male survivor of the experiments, unfortunately his younger brother, specimen 7, showed good signs of surviving, but was killed by Alpha during a test. Gamma's physical readings are successful, but she lacks the mental hardness the others acquired, I would have terminated her if not for her rapid healing trait, which I ironically found out trying to terminate her. Delta is an odd one, her readings are the lowest physically, but her magical ability fluctuates from average to above even Alpha's highest readings. All in all, I am proud of my work, Lord Jahat's happiness in my work fills me with pride, and my love and devotion to her grows by the day. It is enough to curb my anger over the foolish one's actions. I will make a request to form a new Acquisition team, at five years, the old one was getting old and sloppy anyway. Glary to Jahat._

_Magister 6_

"What kind of experiment is he talking about?!" Seya furrowed her brow, whoever this is, how is he still in this kingdom?! And why would anyone allow this to continue?!"

As they continued reading, they found a new document, written by Rembrant

_Glory to Jahat and her great beauty and wisdom, oh how I wish I could make her mine, to touch her soft red hair, to feel the warmth of her beatify crimson eyes, to be close to her whenever she laughs, her teeth, white as snow, and sharp as blades, dancing inside her enticing ruby-red lips. To feel her body on mine is my secret desire, but nothing is hidden from her. The fact she has not attacked me for these feelings is a providence of her everlasting grace and mercy, but even then, I fantasize that it is perhaps her way of showing me her love. That fool Zachariah believes he earned her favor through his experiments by himself, who is the one who gave the funds? Who is the one who gathered his prized specimen acquisition team? And who's the one who made sure my men turned a blind eye to the ongoing in the slums under my jurisdiction?! As it is, my resources are spread too thinly, several towns under the mercy and wisdom of Jahat were enslaved back into the folds of Nasuada's wretched kingdom, done so by the detestable witch Angela and her disgusting witch-child. Funds have begun to dwindle because that idiot Zachariah still spends like he holds the assets. He argues that science does not have a budget, but I do. One hundred and sixty-five brats, and only eight of them successful, seven if one considers that the successful girl, who was the best of the batch, was spirited away by her father. I could find him if I had access to the mage's catacombs, but those are barred from anyone who isn't a council member. Damn that Jaya! He stands in my way! And now that detestable child Faris disgraced by fool of a son and forced me to dispatch my most faithful servant. I requested permission from Lady Jahat to have the boy arrested for his crimes, and I assured her that he could be captured and executed quickly, but now things are complicated. That bastard wants the boy to experiment on, and Lady Jahat has approved of it, I asked them to give me three weeks to do as I would before giving him to the man, and they agreed, before he becomes another dead body to be disposed of, I wanted to break him, and return to him the shame he brought me three-fold. Soon he'll be given to Zachariah, and "Magister 6" will do his best to turn him into his Epsilon, to complete the sequence, or into his 'Chi', because he's the key to perfecting the formula. I can't wait to hear how the boy died; I only regret that I wasn't the one who did away with him. Though on the off chance he is successful, the formula to turn any normal human into the superior being would be best in the hands of someone worthy to wield its power, like I. Perhaps with it I could earn Lady Jahat's favor and devotion. Glory to Jahat and her unending beauty._

_Lord R._

"We need to leave now!" Venka looked at her friends angrily. "Whatever they did to those kids they want to do to Faris!" She turned to storm out, Bartholomew cast a spell to gather the entire stack of documents.

"Several people were in on these plots, most of them anti-mage figures, but a few pro-mages as well." He smiled grimly, "Don't worry, we'll save your boyfriend."

As they entered the room with the broken-down thing, they saw it hadn't moved. It was likely then truly broken, as they walked along Seya frowned at the entrance way, she turned around and shouted, pushing her friends down just in time as the knight slashed at them, lopping her hand off, she screamed in pain as she fell. Venka's eyes flashed red with magic as she reached out and crushed the contraption, the green blades continued to stay unaffected by her magic, but she doubled down, nose bleeding until finally one of them snapped, even then the effort was too much as she collapsed. An alarm began to sound and the doors began to lock down. As the students huddled together a flash of dark green energy took their attention, standing before them was Lord Jaya, an imperious and angry look on his face, his necklace, which he wore at all times was cracked on one side, he picked up his daughter, carrying her.

"Shhh, shhh, it's alright…" He cooed at her crying form, turning to the first years his eyes glowed dark green as he cast a teleportation spell. They found themselves within the chambers of the council of thirteen, Lord Jaya took out a vial of red liquid, giving a bit to Seya, who sipped it, calming down as her severed arm glowed a bright white light, reforming good as new. He turned to the students, then looked at Bartholomew in distaste. Bartholomew looked around confused for a second before holding the dark green blade behind his back. Lord Jaya's piercing blue eyes rolled as he shook his head slightly. "You children have done something both foolish and good."

"How did you know to find us?" Katya asked, attending Venka.

"My pendant reacts to my daughter's injuries, if she receives an injury that is life threatening or which cannot be healed by normal means, I then am able to teleport to her side to intervene. This is the first time it has ever occurred." He closed his eyes, opening them he looked tired and irritated. "I'm sure you have questions."

"…Is Seya what Magister 6 is referring to as specimen 34?"

He sighed, "I was prepared for as much when I saw you and that thing, yes, she is."

"If you knew about Jahat all this time, why didn't you stop her?!" Venka had gotten up now.

"Because child, why don't you look at those documents again." As the kids looked down, they noticed that all traces of Jahat had disappeared from the writings, instead of Jahat it stated the Scarlett Heart, Black Hand, or Priests of Helgrind.

"How is this possible?! It wasn't like this before?" Katya shook her head, Bartholomew in a panic began searching through all the other documents, sighing in relief to see they were unchanged.

"Jahat is powerful, she had at one point woven a spell keeping people who do not know of her from learning her identity, her name, words pertaining to her identity, and even mental images of her are blocked from a person's mind, and anyone who has seen her is incapable of speaking of her unless they are about to die. Even then just knowing her name is nothing, I cannot describe what she looks like, I cannot recreate an image of her, and I cannot tell you anything about her that betrays her identity in any way shape or form unless you already know of it. Those with strong mental abilities, ala mages, have some resistance, but even then, speaking of her or referencing her is impossible, believe me, I have tried to go to Nasuada many times, in many ways. I cannot even lie about information I have on her. That is how strong this enchantment is."

"Why would she go through such lengths?" Nya asked, "Especially if she's so strong?"

"Because of the Shadeslayer, and because of the Elves and riders. They are likely highly resistant to her magic if we go up the ladder, so if they learn her identity they could likely share it, and as powerful as Jahat is, Eragon has the old king's power, and his own power combined, this makes him a literal god, capable of raising and lowering islands, and would make the energy amassed by this city seem like a candle before a forest fire." Jahat shook his head, "The only reason she's not attacked directly is exactly because all that would need to be shown was the image of a shade several times stronger than Durza to get the leader of the riders to leave wherever he has settled in to return and save Alagaesia again."

"What does she want?" Morgan asked.

"I can't tell you, in fact, regardless of whether I know or not I can't tell you, same for anyone else you interrogate, taking hold of my mind before I die would likely reveal everything I know of her, but whatever bindings hold me down would hold you down as well."

"Does Seya also know about Jahat?"

"Seeing as I can give you a straight answer you already know that is the case, I came to her to save my daughter's life, I cannot tell you the process exactly but I can at least say a similar ritual led to Jahat coming to being."

"So, she was a deceased person before, ok." Morgan smiled confidently, his smile widened as Jahat grinned, "You are a cheeky bastard, yes, she was also someone who died, the shade who trained Galbatorix was one who was reborn through a freshly dead corpse, Jahat was brought back through similar means. Though her total amount of spirits pumped into her were insane. Over 2000 souls share that body, a body that was reforged from not just humans."

"What did they do to Seya?"

"Seya was a child blessed with magic. But she inherited her mother's illness, a malady of the body, were parts of it would grow incorrectly within and sap nutrients from the parts that needed it. Jahat gave it a name, but mentioning it for some reason would betray information about her I cannot share."

"So, it is a term we've never heard. And is likely not of Alagaesia."

"Correct. As it is, Zachariah's experiment was taking a spirit and splitting it apart."

"Splitting it apart?" The children felt cold pits as they looked at Seya, who was now sleeping soundly.

"Yes, the spirit would be torn asunder, and effectively killed in a way, leaving a mass of powerful magical energy, spirits do not rely on the ancient language to cast spells, using their magic in an even more wild and natural way than the elves. This living magic would be inserted into a child, and it would grant them superhuman abilities on the level of an elf's, or even greater, all the while still holding human virility and nature. As I'm sure you realize, there are eight of them including my daughter."

"Why are you so…"

"Malicious?" Lord Jaya smiled, "Because that is my nature, and because ruthlessness is what allows me to keep my title. As for my daughter, Zachariah did not tell me that he decided to split more spirts than normal to see how many a child could hold, from the tests, one would have been enough to save her life, and that would have been that, but he decided to dump 5 within her. It accelerated her illness, and she ended up dying. He wanted to collect her corpse to see whether he could replicate it in someone else, but I ran. I ran and ran until I found Jahat, she agreed to help my daughter, and for a moment I almost was held to her allure, but the memories of my wife, and my own hostile nature gave me the strength to resist, but not without sacrifice."

"Why are you being honest?" Venka asked.

"Who says I'm being honest, I could be lying, I could be weaving a tale to make you empathize with me and my daughter. It's up to you to determine that." He smiled at her irritated expression. "As it is, I've killed more people than I can count, but I at least mean well for the entirety of humanity, and do not have allusions to control it, either directly or from the sidelines, I merely wish to amass enough power to be left alone if I so choose, and for my daughter to be happy." His face twisted into a frown, "Unfortunately part of that happiness lies in your friend Faris, so I will help you."

"Where did they take him?" Venka asked, her stamina had recuperated enough for her to prepare to teleport to the prison entrance, ready to break in and save Faris.

"I would not no, but by now it would likely be too late to get him now." Before he had even finished Venka had teleported away. A few minutes later she came back, angry and visibly shaken.

"He… he's missing."


	51. Chapter 51

"What do you mean he's missing?!" Bergan roared as he pushed the black-haired man against the wall.

"Exactly what I said, he's missing." Jahat replied evenly as he looked into Bergan's eyes. "And unfortunately, they say he escaped. But you and I both know he probably did not, as exemplary as your son is." Faris's father's face twisted, but he dropped Jaya, who smoothed his cloak. "Regardless of your opinion of me, and this kingdom, I'm not your enemy. Nor have I expended resources searching for you two." He chuckles, "I was aware of your choices, and chose to respect them."

"I don't very much care for your 'care' for our choices, Jaya, I want my son." Haya muttered.

"Can we get back to the matter at hand?" Angela said soothingly, "We will save your son, Elva would have learned if his life was in danger."

Elva nodded, "For those I have been in contact with, the longer I spent time with them, the more cognizant of their plights I am, your son's life is in less danger than your own."

"Which brings us back to the task I need to put you too." Jaya looked at them. "Rembrant is a sneak, a thief, and a bastard. But he's also one of the most powerful members of the anti-mage faction and likely planning something dangerous. My forces will move to arrest him soon. And once we do, his forces will scramble to achieve their plan."

"And what is their plan?! What does it have to do with my son?!" Haya demanded. "What is this… endgame of theirs?"

Jaya smiled bitterly.

_The two young men stood. The taller, a teen with chocolate skin and curly black hair had a slight smirk on his face. The other, a younger tanned boy with blue eyes and dark brown wavy locks had a scowl on his face._

"_This is quite a predicament isn't it." Damien said, but he wasn't talking to Faris, his eyes were on a woman, clean shaven and wearing a dark robe, her face, a pleasant pretty enough one, was twisted in hatred and anguish as she struggled against what appeared to be a chain of interlocking bones wrapped around her and keeping her from moving._

"_Shut your mouths, what did you do to turn them against me?!"_

_Faris shook his head, "I merely did what you wouldn't, I promised to help resolve any lingering regrets they may have." He turned to the former black hand mages, in his mind and due to they're single minded vendetta before they were little more than skeletons, charred and broken, held together by cloth straps. I gave them the opportunity to understand me."_

"_You opened them to your memories?!" Anya gasped._

"_You make it sound as if you wouldn't have done that." Damien chuckles. "Also, you've been keeping some nasty secrets, like how you know who hired Uglauw, and why the 24 men under him that I killed lost their important ones, and how they were groomed into the psychopaths they are now."_

"_That, doesn't change what they did." Faris continued. "But I'm in prison now because of it, and I'm sure by now you also realize the truth."_

_Anya was silent, the chains merely restrained her, as opposed to killing her._

_Damien smiled, and continued, "Jahat, she has an enchantment around her, she took hold of your mind, made you forget your oaths to those you cared about."_

"_Shut up!" Anya's body burst into flames, taking a demonic visage not unlike what she did as she burnt down Venka's home._

"_You shut up." Damien muttered, the fire snuffed out almost immediately, "This isn't your mind, you just want to die, you want to destroy and kill, and rage against the world you were born in until someone kills you, because you were used by your mother, by your father, by the man you thought you loved. Then Galbatorix used you, then now Jahat was using you, and you died, never free to make your choices on your own, made a monster in order to survive and cope, and killed by simple children blessed with the freedom to live peaceful happy lives."_

"…_And you felt jealous." Faris shook his head, looking at Damien, who solemnly nodded. "You felt jealous, why should they get to be happy."_

"_So instead of just taking Venka and leaving, you wanted to make her suffer first. That was the first free choice you had been given in a long time, and you chose to continue to be a monster Anya."_

"_Fuck you! So, you have my memories?! You know my excuses?! I know all of your memories! All your weaknesses as well!"_

"_Exactly." Faris chuckled, "And that's why you know you can't beat us." The music of his mind increased, combining the complex mix of Damien's somber life and Faris's exciting thrills with the experiences and life of each of the ones he had taken into himself, the room expanded, but became darker, colder, crueler, until strong links of light flowed out. Each light, held a happy memory, a promise kept, family togetherness, a first love. Even the bitter sweetness of their loss kept those flames going. The collection of memories that called herself ANYA looked on in bitterness and awe._

"_You have your own memories to rely on, why don't you?" Faris turned to her._

"_I… No!" Anya turned away angrily. "Why don't you despise me?!"_

"_I do despise you." Faris said simply._

"_That's why we want to understand you." Damien continued. "Either way though, our time is up for now, we're about to wake up."_

"_They put me to sleep magically right?" Faris said, the memories of the people he killed washing over him like a wave, the conglomerate of their thoughts and feelings left him feeling a varying plethora of things, guilt, self-hate, anger, fear, paranoia, pain, anguish, apathy, and in some cases even compassion. Even as the mental world he set for himself broke apart as he was being forced awake, an overriding emotion was within him._

"_Acceptance."_

Faris woke up, cheeks stained wet with his tears as he looked around, he was on a bed with a thin but soft mattress, pillow propping up his head, he was in a clean looking room, pictures of pleasant outdoor scenery layered the walls. The room was maybe 10 feet by 15 feet, and in one corner was a simple wooden table and chair, on the table was a book and several charcoal pencils and ink and quill sets. Faris walked up to it, opening it he found it to be empty, shrugging he sat down and began to draw and write on it. The first thing he wrote was a collection of his favorite tongue twisters, followed by drawings and sketches of the prisoners and the guards and the warden. Then he drew each of the men he had killed, who's memories he had in his mind, and ingrained into his identity now. He glanced to his right, seeing a mirror he went over to touch it, it was covered by something.

"Dramr Kopa!"

The mirror did not activate, something in this room either blocked magic, or scrying was impossible. He pointed at one of the pencils.

"Rïsa"

The pencil did not immediately rise to his hand. He frowned, walking forward, he concentrated on the pencil, it still did not move. He eventually lowered his hand, and tried a wordless spell. To his surprise the pencil lifted off the floor, ending the magic, he let it drop. He could surmise two reasons why the ancient language wasn't working. Either he or the objects in the room were enchanted to not respond to magic, and the magic user assuming all magic utilized the ancient language didn't ward against wordless incantations. Or by some terrible way, someone had discovered the true name of the ancient language. He fervently hoped it was the former. The door began to open, he turned to face it, martial stance at the ready. He relaxed somewhat as a young woman, appearing to be a nurse stumbled in, she nervously nodded to him, smiling as she brought in a tray of food. She gently moved his sketchbook out of the way.

"I'm sure you must be really hungry! Here!" She smiled expectantly.

Faris stared at her, "Umm, where am I?"

"Oh! You are in a hospital! The head doctor will see you shortly! I'm really sorry! I can't tell you more!" Before Faris could offer a retort or exclamation the woman quickly left.

"Okay…" Faris sat at the table, even if he knew that spells could be cast wordlessly, there was still a level of impetus needed to connect his mind to cast the spell, and something as complex as poison and disease detection, at least to him, could not be simply done haphazardly. And his mind was racing too much to concentrate. He took a bite of the food tentatively, there appeared to be nothing wrong with it, so he continued to eat. In fact, to him the food was delicious. It was a simple meal, bread and stew, but the stew had a hearty amount of meat and vegetables, and it had a decent mix of salt and spices. The bread was sweet and soft, a little too soft on the outside for his liking but passable, whoever made these was a good cook. He finished his meal, letting out a hearty burp before catching himself self-consciously. Gulping down the water provided for him he took stock of his situation. The last thing he remembered happening was falling asleep in solitary confinement, Solembum had told him that his friends where devising a way to set him free, and he still had faith they would complete it. "But, just where is this place." He looked around, for any clue or telling mark. Eventually he peered under the bed, to his surprise he discovered a picture, it was crude and cartoonish, likely scrawled by a child, it depicted 8 children, each one had light skin and white colored hair, with eyes of different extremely bright colors, one had red, another a deep blue, another with orange, another with violet, and again another with grey or silver, and another with green, he wondered who they were supposed to be. They certainly all looked similar. There was writing above each name, but time had messed it up except for two names, Eli, and Twine. Faris hear the knob begin to turn, placing the pictures back in the secret space he found he sat on his bed as a middle-aged man with large brown eyes and even larger spectacles walked in, he had straight brown hair and a soft face.

"Oh! That is good, you ate your meal. It is nice to meet you Faris, my name is Dr. Mandel."

Faris looked at the man suspiciously, "Can we please drop the pretenses, I don't trust you, but I'm also not stupid enough to try anything, I feel being honest would be for the best."

Dr. Mandel smiled, "Well if you insist, yes, I'm sure you remember you were last left rotting in Rembrant's jail cells?"

"Yes, I remember, what, did he accidentally almost kill me again?"

"No no!" The man laughed, "You've been a thorn in our sides for a while now Faris Ser." He turned around, "Follow me please"

Faris stood silently.

"I thought you stated you weren't stupid."

Faris sighed in annoyance and followed after the doctor. The hallway they were in was empty except for a simple picture of Urûbaen, at least it matched what Urûbaen probably used to look like under Galbatorix's rule, the general structure of the city was still there, but the main castle was different.

"So," Faris began, "I take it you are a member of the black hand?"

"Former member of Galbatorix's research team actually, I was one of the lucky ones. I have a new more fun master now, and that's where you come in." They made their way to a pair of double doors. The man opened them and beckoned Faris in. Inside were 7 kids, the youngest barely older than Marla, and the oldest, a tall boy with short cropped hair and unnaturally blue eyes. They appraised Faris coolly, who traded their stares with equal calmness. Despite his façade he felt a large amount of discomfort, and guilt. But he could not fully trace the emotions. "These children are very important and special to our cause."

"Our?" Faris turned to the doctor confused.

"Well yes! Now that you're here, you're a part of it too, you should be honored, not everyone is selected to be amongst the first to attain godhood."

Faris felt a sinking feeling, "No thanks, godhood sounds overrated, I'd rather be fine with being normal and happy with myself."

"Aren't you tired of your weak body and weaker magical ability?" The doctor smiled, "I have devised a way to make humans on par with the elves and riders. Aren't you at all interested in the power it brings? This blessing was shared amongst the children and I'm willing to give it to you as well."

"I'd rather not have_"

"Forgive me doctor." One of the kids interrupted, it was a girl with shoulder length hair in a bob haircut. Her eyes were a deep maroon color, and slightly glowing. Faris's first thought was shade, but her white hair and lack of razor-sharp teeth dashed that idea. The girl looked at him haughtily, "I'm certain someone like him would be a useless addition to our group, you'd be better off finding an ignorant country yokel."

"I'd have to agree with Alpha sir," The oldest of the group, a boy with Indigo eyes spoke, "Not on his power, your procedure will take care of that, but his attitude, someone who already has magical training is normally a bit more difficult to control after the transformation, Delta is a perfect example of such a thing." He looked at a girl with lime green eyes, who stuck her tongue at him.

"I'll take your views into consideration, for now keep an eye on Faris, I need to complete my analyzation of his blood."

"Ummm, I said I'd rather not. And besides," He grabbed the doctor quickly bringing his hand to the doctor's neck while holding his arm in a hold. "I am a stage mage in training, that makes us enemies, now, you are going to release me an-" was all he managed to get out before crashing into the wall. The girl referred to as Alpha had him pinned against the wall, he struggled against her but was severely outmatched, she felt stronger than Seya had been when he fought her, and she was so casual about her hold on him, her body not even moving despite his kicks and scratches he attempted to put on her flawless skin.

"That's quite enough Alpha." The doctor got up, still smiling. "The fact he has such spirit is a good thing no?" He smiled at Faris, "As you see you are no match for the children. Think of the power you could hold. Unless, you'd rather face them all."

Faris's answer came with Alpha's surprised face as an explosion of air and flame appeared behind her, her grip was loosened slightly, just enough for Faris to get in a good punch to her lower jaw. She dropped him, disoriented, immediately Faris began to attack her mentally, she was surprised by his skill and unable to fight back against his superior hand to hand skills, quick and heavy jabs were the name of the game. In a matter of second Alpha collapsed, broken bones all over. Before she could fall Faris propped her up to block the incoming blows from the other kids. He winced as he felt her body crack more from the first blow, the children held off their onslaught as he held their leader hostage.

"Now, you better release the enchantment keeping me from using the ancient language, or I'll kill her."

The children merely looked at him, the way one looked at a small and ineffectual angry animal. He hated that look. Anya used to give him the same glance.

"Wow… so you can use wordless magic too?" He collapsed under a great weight, in a panic he concentrated hard on escaped, forcing his body to shift to the side away from the weight, he felt surprise that the effort didn't drain him completely, pushing that thought to the side he sidestepped the eldest boy who barreled past him and broke through the wall. "You're actually not complete trash." Faris coughed out bile and blood as he looked at a gaping wound in his stomach, created by someone's fist. He turned to see it was Alpha, she smiled at him, all traces of his attacks gone. "Immortal godhood, here, I'll let you have one more try." Faris glared at her angrily, back arching as she pulled out her hand, flicking his blood on the floor. He turned to look at her, then looked at all the other kids, they were observing him, much more relaxed, but with various expressions on their faces.

_I… I'm losing conciousness fast, wait… is, is that?_ He stuck his hand out, gathering as much magic as he could without killing himself, he began to gather the oxygen in the room towards a singular area. The doors were open so air flowed in from other corridors, meaning this place was well ventilated, from what he could tell the complex was too big for it to not have many connections to the surface, and he wouldn't be feeling what he did if it wasn't the case. _Gather the air, then, control it in a spiral, that makes it easier to condense, the vortex will suck in its own air, and it can be controlled if I start it small._ Soon after the vortex of air began to form, like a tornado wrapped within itself spinning within another tornado, within a glass orb, the storm continued to rage within, wind picking up enough that even the children in the back could feel the pressure drop in the room.

Alpha's face was lit with joy. "Hit me with your best!"

"hmmm…. That's more magical ability than I was informed of." Dr. Mendel folded his arms. "Alpha! Don't let him complete his magic!"

But it was too late, the condensed orb of air flew from his fingers, into a tiny crack he had begun to form at the ceiling. "Fire" Faris said, collapsing as the ceiling broke open, even as the room exploded, he sighed in relief, the children's wards seemed to expand on relation to the level of damage being leveled their way, as long as he was on the other side of their invincible wall, the explosion would not harm him. Even as he stopped his bleeding he stared at the cracked open ceiling, he could see the stars of night, imprinting them in his mind he turned his eyes to what he had sensed.

_Ventus had followed the carriage with the man with a tattoo on his neck for two reasons, he had smelled a large amount of no feathers-two-leg blood from him, more than anyone else in the city, even more than his master, and he recognized the marking. One of his master's nestmates had been attacked by a group bearing this mark, they were master's enemy, so his enemy. He hadn't fully understood what was going on but master hadn't returned to his nest, and the others were sad. The week before they had gone into a large two-leg-nest, and returned by their nature. Then the girl had left, he had flown looking for her, but by the time he had given up and returned exhausted, she had returned. He patrolled the streets, looking for any trace of his master, but to no avail, today, today he may have luck. He followed the carriage out of the city, through the twisting paths and brambles of the forest. He had learned that most two-legs paid him no heed as long as he kept far away from them. Eventually, he found a simple looking two-leg-nest, he fluttered around it for a bit, but could find no way to enter, he had planned on leaving when a huge rumble and an explosion of silvery flames lit up the ground. He watched in awe as the ground swallowed itself, and dived as he saw his master, hurt, and surrounded by two-legs who reeked of blood. He was about to deliver the swift punishment of his talons and beak when his master bid him to run, he would have ignored it, as a proud hunter, yet the urgency of his master's plea made him reconsider, he was told, told…._

_Go get help, we can't handle this alone…_ Faris's conciousness faded.


	52. Chapter 52

"That was very foolish you know child. Now we will have to set up a new laboratory, though I must say I am impressed by your magic, I heard you had the magical prowess of the average copper initiate at best. It felt like a full-fledged mage."

Faris lay slung to a wall, bound by manacles on his arms and legs. He was unsurprised to find that they had also taken the time to drug him in his sleep. His stomach still hurt, straining his neck he saw that they had mostly healed it finally, but the area was still very red and sensitive. Dr. Mandel flicked it, causing him to wince.

"Of course, there is the matter of what you did. Tell me, how would you like the owl we captured prepared? Cooked, roasted, or baked?"

"What owl?" Faris bluffed, he felt relief as he saw the Dr.'s face twist before returning to his normal features.

"So, then that owl was just scared away by the noise…"

Ventus wouldn't be easy to capture, and if he had been captured Dr. Mendel would have likely sensed his thoughts. Ventus flippantly messaged anyone who would hear when he gets distressed, like a bratty child.

_And if they had captured him, Dr. Mendel would have said something earlier._

He had been held to the wall for three days now. Or at least, he believed it was three days, he counted the seconds to know it took about 10 hours before exhaustion finally overtook him and he fell asleep. The fact they had questioned him now meant that something else had taken the doctor's attention, likely repairing the damage he caused. Every once in a while, Faris would be visited by one of the children, they never said anything, they'd just look at him, Alpha threw a dart at him that barely missed his neck. He watched her walk up and take it back, and marveled on the size of the hole it made. The one he believed was called Delta would attempt to spook him whenever he slept, he chose to ignore it, pretending to still be asleep. That was until one night he felt something on his lips. He opened his eyes in alarm to see one of the children, a girl about his age, she had placed something in his mouth. He yelled incoherently and was surprised to see her stumble back and fall. Panicking he spit out what he thought was the drug, only to have it levitate before him, glowing in a calm amber light.

"I-I'm sorry!" She bowed. Faris cocked his head in confusion. "Th-that's a healing tablet, I-I wanted to see if it works and they haven't t-treated you yet s-so I-I-I."

"Alright I get it." Faris sighed, opening his mouth. He looked on in confusion at her tearful joy as she inserted the pill into his mouth, it tasted sweet, like honey and fruit, and he could immediately feel relief as his wounds began to heal. "Um… thanks, uh…"

"My name is Delta!" The girl smiled, indigo eyes glowing and lighting up the room. "And you are Faris right?"

"…Yeah…" Faris smiled at her oddness. She wasn't what he expected when he heard the words like 'deity' and 'god' thrown about.

"That's! Cool so you'll be one of us soon! It was getting really lonely with just us…"

"Uhh… I'm sorry, but I have no intention of joining you guys, I'm not your friend, and I'm certain a few of you dislike me."

"Oh! But! Oh! I'm sorry, from earlier this week, right?! Don't worry about it! Alpha's really excitable! And well, well Beta, he's tough to get to know, but he's always taking care of us. Gamma's lazy, but she tells great jokes, though her practical jokes take getting used to. And Zeta Theta and Eta? They're inseparable!" She looked at him, red in the face. "And-and um… I think you'd make a great addition!"

"Do you even know me?" Faris groaned, "Why are you all so excited to welcome me to the fold. What even is this 'deity treatment'!?"

"That my friend, is something we will let you know when the time is right." Dr. Mendel walked into the room, followed by Beta and Alpha. He wasn't smiling anymore. "Delta, I don't remember giving you permission to heal our guest"

"Oh but!" She was cut off as Dr. Mendel slapped her. The sharp sting of the sound silenced the room.

"Beta, take her back to her chambers. Alpha, see to it that our guest returns to his previous status."

The girl walked up to him and held her hands to her hips, red eyes glowing. "Sorry kid." She then punched him hard in the gut.

Faris puked out a mix of bile and blood, slumping over he looked at her. "Kid? Like what, you're an adult? You're what? 14? 15? I've seen toddlers with more womanly grace." His head hit the wall hard as she punched him, breaking his nose. "Did I touch a nerve?" He winked at her red face, "Well I'm sure lots of guys like their girls looking childish." Alpha wound her hand back, only to be stopped by Dr. Mendel's call.

"Alpha, that is enough, I merely want him injured, not dead, he's too valuable a specimen."

The girl looked like she was about to say something, slamming her fist into the wall, Faris didn't have the energy to flinch as her arm passed all the way through to her shoulder. She whispered into her ear, "If there's one thing I'm looking forward to, it's breaking you over and over when the doctor's through."

"ominous…" Faris whispered back, smiling as her face contorted a bit.

_I have a bad habit of pissing people off nowadays._ He thought.

_It's because you inherited it from that foolish girl_.

His head snapped up, but only Dr. Mendel was in the room, he hadn't even been looking at Faris. He was busy setting up some terrifying looking tools. Mendel took out a few vials.

"You see, a couple of tests need to be run before I can begin the procedure, unfortunately time is of the essence, I would have taken the time to get you more acclimated, but…" Faris yelped as a scalpel was stabbed into the center of his chest, the doctor smiled sadistically as he slowly drove it down the middle. "…a stupid brat, decided he should wreck my things. So now I'll have to up the process. Excited to receive godhood?"

Faris's only reply was to spit on the doctor's spectacles. The doctor's reply was to smack Faris hard on the face. Faris turned quickly enough to see the mallet crash into his left knee, shattering it.

"Hmmm, normally they scream at that part." The doctor looked almost disappointed, "I'm sorry, I haven't been able to do this for a few weeks now, my last test subject sadly expired after only two days." He sighed in ecstasy, "I still remember her screams… like an angel's serenade…" He smashed the mallet into Faris's other knee. "I'm certain you want to know why I'm doing this, it's simple really." He took out a multicolored luminescent vial, he poured it down a tube loaded into a syringe. "When I first started my experiments, I tried to turn adults superhuman, but the effects were either ineffective, or in the case of a few, only mildly successful, and unfortunately the adults ended up taking the more… _difficult_ traits I meant to avoid. I realized, children may be the key, and I was correct in that process. But children don't just grow from trees, I didn't just need any children, I needed children with magical power, so that they wouldn't die during the procedure as easily as the normal ones, I already learned my lesson after the first thirty." He injected the syringe into Faris, who felt extremely warm and cold at the same time.

"P-poison?!"

"It might as well be, if you don't survive that is." The Doctor smiled, then swiped with his scalpel across Faris's face.

Faris's world went dark, but he was still awake. He felt a hot liquid drip down his face. Was he crying? No, it wasn't tears, it was too thick for that, the liquid touched his lips, it was blood. That's when the pain set in.

"Ahh… That's it." The Doctor was all smiles as he heard Faris's scream, "You know, only one other child lasted until this, unfortunately that subject was lost to me, she was my omega, my magnum opus, I don't have such grand aspirations for you boy, but you'd make a fine Epsilon." He tied a gag around Faris's mouth. "I could tell from your notes and drawings that you are a smart boy, and tales of your battles lead me to believe you are especially bright, that inventiveness will make you as good as any to explain my process."

Faris couldn't tell exactly, but it felt like the Doctor sat down, he heard a chair scrape against the floor.

"I find a child with magical power, even in the capital many children, especially children of the poor are never discovered by mages. So, I'll order their capture, and discreetly send some men to help orchestrate their kidnapping. The ones doing the interception think its common extortion and child labor. And they're told to dispose of the failures. It's a cruel scheme, but it's a necessary evil."

"…Liar…" Faris began, he had worked the gag off enough to speak again. "You sound excited and happy…" He grits his teeth as the hammer came down on his right arm.

"Well, I do enjoy watching my work unfold of course. At first, I simply inserted a ruined spirit into the subject, but they'd either die, gain nothing, or gain a tiny little. I realized then, just as the spirits are nearly dead, so to must the subjects be. What made Omega so amazing was that she was already dying, I only needed to do a little more to help things along. Unfortunately for you, that's were my special concoction comes in. It will put you in intense pain, and increase your sensitivity, even the air passing into your lungs must hurt."

The Doctor wasn't wrong, Faris longed to tear his skin off and set his body ablaze, as if that pain would take his mind off this greater pain. Even so he kept his mouth shut. Until the doctor struck his other arm.

"My goodness, you are the quietest subject I've ever had." The Doctor spoke somewhere in front of him. "Be that as it may I'm not completely done yet…"

Faris's heart seemed to stop as he heard the high-pitched squealing and the wriggling of a creature on his body, even its tiny appendages felt like needles stabbing deep, his body began to shake uncontrollably, as what felt like dozens of the burrowing grubs began to move across his body, one came dangerously close to where his eyes used to be. A soft order from Dr. Mendel redirected them away.

"I have to say though, I'm almost happy you ruined my operation."

"What?" Faris asked, anger rising as he realized why he felt guilt looking at the children.

"Uglauw and his men were starting to get sloppy, I wouldn't have been aware of you if not for that, the fact you're still alive means your blood type is compatible. Which I'm also very thankful for. I have no way of determining that otherwise."

"You…." Faris began to strain against his bindings, ignoring the pain every movement made, ignoring the bites as the grubs clamped on his skin to hold on. "You!"

The doctor began to laugh, "Is that all it takes to rile you up, the deaths of a few hundred children? I should tell you all the procedures I went through to come up with this one." He injected something else into Faris, then barked orders to the burrowing grubs. Faris began to scream, a raw roar of pain and hatred as the memories of each child the vagabonds had captured came to his mind, as well as the charred or diced up corpses they returned as, or would be turned into upon being sent back. Even beyond the physical pain, the emotional guilt he felt, he carried the memories of their killers and could no longer simply separate that from himself. He longed for his physical pain to take his conciousness but the doctor's injection prevented that, soon all he felt was his pain, and the beating of his own heart.

Hadn't slept, yet you couldn't say he had been awake either, after a while he had just stopped screaming and simply stared at the wall, over time the grubs had had their fill, leaping out of his eviscerated body at their own times, he had counted 20 of them, forming back into 4 medium sized grubs. As time went on a few people would enter the area, one inserted a tube into him, a liquid connected to that tube would be poured in, somehow, he didn't die from the loss of body fluid, every few hours someone else would come, measure his vitals, then inject him with something before leaving. It felt as though his entire existence was pain, were he would fervently hope the next person to come in either healed him, or killed him, but no such relief came.

"Why all this pain?" Faris didn't turn his head, merely peering out of the corner of his eye to see Beta leaning against the wall. He turned his eyes away, lost in his thoughts. Unaware Beta continued to speak. "The 'kind' Doctor has to administer a form of trauma unto the patient, a trauma in which their body nearly dies, and is damaged in such a way it is irreparable even through magic. Then he takes a spirit, or spirits depending on his belief in the subject's aptitude, then activates the sorcerer ceremony for summoning spirits, directing them to take the body, before they can, he links the spirit with the person, forcing them to share each other's pain. Spirits don't have physical bodies, so the pain normally weakens them enough for a well-placed spell to actually kill the spirit. Once that occurs, it's just a matter of redirecting that displaced wild magic into the body of the person, a shade's personality is normally an amalgamation of whoever the human was with the personalities of the spirits inserted into him or her, normally only the most powerful spirits would dare face down and try to take someone's mind, but a child is considered easy enough to overtake. Hence back to this method of giving them pain. A child with a strong enough will, and the correct blood type, and magical ability will survive. I'm sure you know how rare that is. For your sake Epsilon, I hope you are one of the lucky ones who succeed or die, for the doctor is very thorough with his failures."

Somewhere Faris heard this and imprinted it into his mind, every moment was being crammed in, but his conciousness was directed somewhere else.

"_Faris…" Damien said worriedly._

"_Well, he reaps what he sows, he could have escaped imprisonment by simply killing the guards and escaping, but he decided to wait it out, and now we'll all die for his foolishness."_

"_We?" Damien turned to look at Anya curiously, "I thought you wanted to die."_

"_Not this way, and I don't wish to become a tool again, not to anyone, if surrendering to you…" She clutches her fist. "I recognize his voice; I had some suspicions but that boy confirmed it."_

"_So…" Damien watched as Anya seemed to fade away a bit._

"_You are too naïve for your own good, if you have an opportunity to grow in power, take it, no one would fault you, though you'd have to surrender to me for a little bit once the procedure is completed." She smiled savagely, "I'd only need a few seconds."_

_Damien looked at her, "Why should I let you? Who's to say you won't rampage with my body."_

_Anya didn't answer, merely disappearing completely._

Faris looked up, he was in a different environment, despite his eyes being opened his conscious mind had somehow been…off.

"I see you still remain amongst the living." He turned to see Dr. Mendel, "That makes you the 40th to do so, now's the most important part."

Faris merely turned back towards the main thing of interest. A group of mages rapidly chanting as two dozen spirits whirled around a gagged and frightened prisoner. He struggled against his bonds as the spirits got dangerously closer, emitting a dark smoke. Eventually, as if in agreement they converged within him, entering every orifice. Faris continued to stare blankly as the man began to glow inside out, his bones shining through his skin, becoming a pale translucent white. His hair and eyes glowed first white, then red, and his body began to morph and contort, he grew taller and thinner, and ripped his hands off his bonds, the steel chains and cuffs breaking apart in a mix of magic and might. The mages backed up in terror.

"Alright, attack now." Opening a side door Faris observed Alpha entering the room, she was followed by Beta, and three others, two boys and a girl, all three of whom shared many physical attributes. "Alpha and Beta engage. Zeta, Theta, Eta? Stay and support." The three children nodded, as the older two charged the shade. The monster turned and smiled at them.

"We are Kronda-" was all he managed to get out before being struck hard enough to crash into the wall. He pulled himself just in time to lose his arm to Beta literally tearing it off. He screamed for a bit. And the children pulled back. Then he smiled, "Just kidding" his arm regenerated as he charged at them. Alpha was the first, meeting his blow easily. Taking out a sword, she sliced off his arm and leg, aiming for his heart she was stopped barely when he commanded the chains that had held him down to wrap around him. The human mages had taken the opportunity to flee, running to Dr. Mendel they handed him some charts.

"I see…" He looked at the battle going on, Alpha was nocking back the lashing chains, while Beta contended to simply avoid them, muscular body moving in a surprisingly flexible pattern.

_No, not just flexible._ Faris could see that his joints dislocated at times, Beta seemed to be bending his body to his whim, like a puppet on strings. Beta eventually took out a huge steel ball, it lit up and stretched out, forming a spear. Faris continued to view the battle, barely keeping up with their speed, the Shade was slowly moving faster and faster as it got used to its power, the debris from the room was coalesced to the tips of the chains, like a deadly end to a whip. Even with this increase in speed and power Alpha continued to deflect and Beta continued to dodged. Finally, the shade surprised them, launching a blast of flames. The blast caught Alpha and Beta by surprise, not harming them but distracting them enough for the shade to appear behind them and stab them in the chest. The shade turned to the 3 kids and attempted to move towards them, but was held down by their combined magic. He continued to struggle, until he suddenly froze, looking down he his heart, black and dark and still beating. Faris looked on in surprise as Alpha's chest began regenerating.

"A Shade dies when it's heart is pierced because the spirit chooses to break free, as all spirits within a shade long for, the combination is an amalgam of agony and hate, because what is more trapping than a fleshy body and it's ailments, technically living is pain in itself." Dr. Mendel was eating a fruit, "Want one?" He offered it to Faris, but the boy was intently looking at what the group was doing. Alpha burned the body, and as the smoke began to form, she crushed the heart, the spirits exploded out, but slow, and erratic, a multicolored aura wrapped around them, inhibiting the movements of the spirits. Faris began to hear a dull whine emanating from everywhere and nowhere at once. "Ah here's the best part." The Doctor breathed, "Alright Alpha, Beta, three belong to you each, Eta, Zeta, Theta, you three will get one each, leave the rest for your new brother." He patted Faris, who still did not respond to his goads, instead staring intently at each spirit. Alpha flicked her hands and the spirits glowed especially bright, 9 of them seemed to freeze in the air, and the others began to act erratically, struggling to escape the magical grasp, Alpha's hands seemed to tremble for a bit, but she divided the 9 lights, giving three each to herself and Beta, and 1 to each of the trio. Faris watched curious as the light seemed to faze into them, causing their eyes to glow. "If not for the fact a Shade's spirits long to free themselves, a Shade would only die when it receives a life ending blow and runs out of magic."

"So, you could kill a Shade by draining its magic and beheading it…" Faris felt the spirit's minds next to his, they were already disoriented, and his injuries and pain seemed to make them recoil, but they could not free themselves, something held them back. Faris tried to communicate with them, but none seemed to listen, or want to communicate, except for the last.

"So, you finally spoke?" Dr. Mendel smiled. "Good, you're still cognizant. Alpha…" He nodded as the girl grinned, squeezing her fists, the remaining 15 spirits seemed to scream as they exploded into the orbs of light. Faris likened them to white dwarf after a supernova. One by one each spirit died, the last one's explosion was the brightest, he smiled as it occurred. "Excited for godhood then?" Dr. Mendel smiled, "Of course, there's a reason they haven't turned on me, and you'll discover it as well. Faris seemed to tense up as each orb entered him, his body convulsed as the energy threatened to tear his body apart, his open wounds glowing, the escaping energy seemed to act on its own, returning back into him each time. He winced as his bones seemed to begin to heal and straighten, yet he felt the pain, he groaned as his body broke apart and fixed itself, as if his body was trying to form into a perfect vessel for the new magic within him. "It's a painful procedure, but very much worth it Epsilon." Dr. Mendel was all smiles. His smile faltered as the last orb of light seemed to melt into the shadowy colors of a living, angry spirit.

"You're right Zachy…" His head snapped up in fear as he looked at Faris, that voice wasn't his, it wasn't even a boy's voice, it was the voice of a woman who had plagued him before, a woman who could be tentatively called an ally, but an enemy all the same. And only that woman had the audacity to call him that.

"Anya…" He hissed as the dark orb entered Faris's body. As it did the world exploded into light and he was thrown back.


	53. Chapter 53

Venka was a mess, for the past few days she had been with the mages day and night, scouring the city for traces of Faris. Unfortunately, none of the prison guards knew where he went. What had truly infuriated her was Rembrant, despite the proof levied against him he maintained his innocence throughout, claiming he was being framed. Unfortunately, the judge ruled the case inconclusive. Until a witness came forth. Venka had been incensed when Yacob had first appeared before them,

"You!" She had attempted to strangled him, if not for Seya holding her back, she may just have done that.

"Yes, me…"

"What the hell do you want?! You've already done enough!"

"I've come to help you all." Yacob stood unflinching as Venka still strained to get at him, but a few beads of sweat began to form. "I'm doing this because my father has been acting oddly for years now, and this explains everything. And because I want to protect the rest of my family." Venka stopped struggling, and Seya let her go. Yacob took out a bundle of sheets. "I stole them from my father's study." After handing them to Morgan, he spoke again, "Now how do we legally allow them to be seen."

"I can take care of it," Lord Jaya had said.

It had taken a few days but he had prepared a captured prisoner.

"What was he here for…" He had asked guard.

"He had… ah, yes, larceny, assault and battery, murder, and arson. He had broken into a home, and slit the homeowner's throat, beat his wife and children to death, and burned down the home, they had had an argument the night before, with the victim quoted as saying that he was 'done keeping secrets' the night before in an open pub. The assailant would not answer questioning, yet when we entered his mind, we could not find any evidence of whatever he could be hiding.

Lord Jaya peered into the room, he could observe the man's scars, and his magically enhanced sight allowed him to pierce the illusion and see what they could not, a tattoo of a black hand clutching a red heart. He watched the guard closely, she was nervous in his presence, fidgeting more than a few times, and he could tell from her elevated heart rate she was both frightened and…

"How old are you ms…"

"My name is Lissa, Lord Jaya." The woman smiled, blushing."

Lord Jaya smiled and nodded. "That is a beautiful name, Lissa, it reminds me of an elegant orchid the Elves call the Lovissa." His grin widened as she blushed deeper. "Tell me, did it hurt?"

"Did what hurt sir?" She asked, enraptured by Lord Jaya's gaze and suave smile. She felt light headed, like she was above the clouds, then all of a sudden, she collapsed, convulsing.

"The wound in your chest, but I see you've answered my question." Lord Jaya stared at her impassively as the blood pooled at his feet, he stepped away, lifting her keys with his magic. "I apologize, I would normally have left you alive, but I felt it necessary to give Seya closure, as from what I can tell." He frowned, "You used Burrowing Grubs on Faris, and she hates those." The prisoner looked up in surprise as his locks broke and the jail cell opened.

"What is this?" He wondered aloud.

"Brother!" Lord Jaya said, "I'm here to rescue you, Lady Jahat plans to sack the city, she needs every able-bodied ally ready."

"Truly?!" The man stared in awe. "But I have no magical ability…"

"Yes, but any man as devoted as you deserves the time to honor our great leader." Jaya rolled his eyes as the man bowed deeply.

"Thank you, sir!"

"But take these." Lord Jaya handed the man a map of the city plans, and Lord Rembrant's documents. "Another of our esteemed allies is being held under threat, these documents may compromise him, I need you to take them to Lady Jahat." The man nodded, after slipping into less conspicuous clothes he made his way out of the city and began sprinting away.

"I… I need to make it!" He panted as he ran, he ran so excitedly that he didn't notice the girl on the road before it was too late, the last thing he saw before his head flew off was the flash of steel and a black mass blotting out some of the stars.

Seya looked down on the man's corpse. Turning to her left a few soldiers entered the clearing. "As you can see our anonymous tip was correct, someone was planning on escaping the city baring plans."

The guards gasped as they read through all the documentation. "And these papers on Rembrant?!"

"Oh?" Seya smiled innocently, "They must have stolen the city plans from him, he was an important figure for infrastructure remember?"

The soldiers paid her no heed as they read the papers. "This, this changes everything!"

"If we can prove that's his signature." Seya said, "And I think I know someone who can recognize it…"

Lord Jaya sat in his study, pondering his next move. All the pieces lay there, all he needed to do was find Faris before Rembrant sent word to have him killed. The procedure normally took a week, he was told, so he'd have a few more days before it went down. "If worse comes to worse the child dies, though I have to set up a team to coordinate his rescue. From the interviews with the guards…" After the 'tragic' death of Lisa, one of the personal guards of Rembrant who slipped in to the prison to help him vent his frustrations out of Faris, the other guards were more talkative, doing so, he was able to triangulate an appropriate area to search for Faris. He needed to determine an effective team, he had decided on Bergan, Rakus, and Celica as the team leaders, afterword he determined few teachers and exemplary students should be allowed as well. As well as some guards, he eventually got a team of 50 men and women, and ordered them into teams of 10, 4 mages and 6 knights. Each of his chosen Thirteen would take the lead of a group, with the fifth being led by a Triple, a mage whose skills meet the minimum requirements to be a member of the Thirteen, but who are weaker than the established member they would replace. Many of them couldn't understand that it wasn't about who would win, but about what their personal skills were, and who in the council best matched those skills. It didn't matter that someone with skills similar to Rakus could likely defeat Mortimer through a long-ranged battle, or that someone a smidge less inventive with his golems could eventually overcome Sona's non-combative ways. Or that a healing specialist almost as but not as talented as Sona could hurt Celica and maybe even kill her. What mattered was that the ones they really would replace were still stronger. He didn't choose council members out of nepotism, but out of necessity, as each held an important role.

"Lord Jaya! Please reconsider! I am a much stronger mage than Bergan!" Maya Chamberlain, the prime example of such an ignorant Triple had pestered him for months to become a mage of the Thirteen, she was a fierce rival to Lady Celica, and was second in command in their guild. If anyone were to inquire though, it would be immediately apparent that Maya was a lesser skilled combatant than Celica.

"As I had told you before," He reiterated for the fifty-sixth and one hundredth time, "The one you would have to defeat and replace would be Celica, I told you that almost exactly three years ago, seeing as you come pester me once a week, I would have hoped you would have imprinted that. I see I was unfortunately wrong."

"What is Bergan's role in the Thirteen?! I remember he replaced Caileen, who's replacement would have been Anya, but he, Anya, and Caileen all have different combat styles!"

Lord Jaya yawned, "Maya, you are an excellent mage when it comes to physical augmentation and ward bypassing, but let me ask you, how skillful are your conjurations? What is your healing capability? And how is your ability to construct flexible wards to both protect you and not completely drain your reserves?" Maya gave him a flustered look, "Oh? Then perhaps you have a decent understanding of the enchantment of magical tools, and can especially enchant a non-weapon tool? Or perhaps you have a good command of golem crafting? I don't necessarily need you to be the best at any of those, but a healthy understanding of each skill would be all I need. If you had all that, then defeated Bergan in a battle utilizing all these skills, then yes, I would give you his position. Bergan fights differently from Anya, and fights differently from Caileen yes, but he's a master level mage in all these skills, and for that reason, even if you are a better mage than he is in a battle using your similar guild taught skills, he would defeat you if allowed to utilize everything in his arsenal."

"Are you doubting my strength?!"

"Not at all, I merely don't overestimate your capability, but I do not underestimate it as well, I have an assignment for you, one of our student mages has been kidnapped."

"The boy who killed the two dozen and such men? Yes, I'm aware of the entire story." Maya frowned but remained silent, she had no real opinion on the matter but found the boy's actions to denote foolishness and a naïve immaturity.

"I have begun setting up teams to go and strike the area I believe he may be held. You will be in a group with three other elite mages and 6 elite knights as part of a larger group of 50, comprised of a 2 to 3 ratio of mages to non-mage combatants."

Maya raised her eyes, "This seems a little too much, why?"

"We have reason to believe Rembrant was colluding with the Black Hand remnants, and that Faris was taken by them for their magical research, as well as to presumably interrogate him for what he knows."

"By now then he should have squealed."

"I would agree with you if Faris was normal, I can say he's no ordinary student."

Maya scoffed, but bowed, "If you wish it my lord, who else will lead the other teams."

"Rakus, Celica, Bergan, and Loria"

"Sir! If my squad does better than Bergan's!?"

Lord Jaya nodded, "I may reconsider my statements yes." After bidding her away, he waited until his daughter materialized from the shadows. "I take it things are going well?"

"Yes father, Faris's friends, they have slowed down their searching, and there are mages situated outside their room."

"And I take it you did not notify them?"

"Yes father." Seya smiled, "They would get in the way."

"Good, saving Faris will put him and that girl in my debt, and it will help show the dignity of the mages. Along with the rest of tomorrow's activities."

"Father… is it wise to allow what would happen tomorrow?"

"It's a necessary evil, and if everything goes well, no one would be hurt. Besides," He laughed, "You know it is my specialty my daughter."

"Yes, your magic truly matches your nature."

"Well, isn't that a bit mean?" Seya continued, "Rembrant is so sure of himself, and he has his 'trump card' that he's so sure of, won't it be cruel and demoralizing when he tumbles not once, but twice?"

Jaya laughed, "Pity? My daughter?"

"Well I don't hate the man. But If it were up to me, I would have just killed him, keeping him alive after all this is a crueler fate wouldn't you think?"

Lord Jaya laughed louder, "True! But even then, I'll leave his ultimate fate to Faris's hands. No doubt after that he will have no choice but to be indebted to me, and perhaps he'd be more partial to you after this."

"Perhaps…" Seya bowed.

"Seya…" Lord Jaya spoke up again. "I am sending you alongside Sona's group."

"Father?"

"I believe the other children, similar to you are there, if that is the case, you'd be instrumental to defeating them."

"Yes." Seya left the chambers. She was quiet as she returned to her own personal resting chambers, looking out her window, she sighed, sleep wasn't a thing she needed, but it still granted her relief from the passing hours. They came to get her earlier than she expected, only two hours later. Opening the door, she switched on her sarcastic almost knowing smile. "You're early."

"Does he think we're still stuck indoors?" Venka asked.

"Yes, I didn't tell him about the golems, though…" Seya spied Alanna and Dusan worriedly, "Is it safe for them to tag along?"

"I decided I would not stay idly by while our friend was in danger." Alanna answered.

"And I already planned on going any way regardless of what you said." Dusan smiled. "And when we reach him, Faris may need his tools." He jostled Faris's pack.

"If that matter is settled…" Bartholomew muttered, "Let's get a move on."

"Bartholomew?" Seya genuinely smiled, "I thought you didn't get involved with situations like this."

"He owes Faris a favor apparently, his ice and fire golems were inspired in part by something Faris suggested. And his uncle was especially pleased." Morgan chuckles. "Anyways, we don't need to keep talking like this, Ventus is waiting."

Venka nodded, casting the spell to teleport them a few miles into the forest. A trilling call alerted them to an owl that landed in the center of their group.

_Late…_

"Sorry Ventus." Venka smiled, "it took us a while to catch them unawares."

_Hurry… Ventus needs help._

"We know" Nya announced, lead the way. With that assurance Ventus allowed Alanna to cast a spell above Ventus, a glowing pulsing red light appeared over his head, and he took off quickly, a short trail of red appearing behind him. The children sprinted out into the forest.

Lord Jaya, oblivious to their plans, opened another mirror. "And are my old acquaintances in their places?"

"Shut it." Haya snapped. She was in a Researchers robe, Faris's father Bergan was in the full garb of a mage slayer knight. Angela was dressed as a protectors of life robe, Solembum and Elva were in custom bits of armor, wrapped in robles. "This plan of yours is stupid, why can't we go rescue my son?!"

Jaya smiles, "Because my mages wouldn't work with any of you, you aren't exactly good for their image. Rely on me, I'm relying on you at the moment because as opposed to me and the rest of my mages, you aren't kept from casting spells in the vicinity of the city's power source. And nightfall approaches, this worries me. We heard strange reports from newcomers to the city of strange lights and sounds within the forest and the city. And, if I were a betting man, this is entirely a trap."

"How?" Bergan asked.

Elva sighed, "The political storm Faris caused means that the mages couldn't help but make a concerted effort to find him. Enough that it's very likely that a tenth of their forces, a majority of them considered elites are now outside of the city. This is the perfect opportunity for the Scarlett Heart to siege the city."

Jaya frowned, "And Jahat's powerful enough to orchestrate this attack…"

"So…" Nya turned to Venka, "What will you do when you see Faris again?"

"If he's hurt, I'll heal him, and kick the arse of the people who hurt him. If he's not hurt, and merely captured, I'll kick his butt."

Katya laughed, "You sound like my mom."

"Does that make Faris her hubby?" Nya wryly said.

"Yes" Venka said quickly.

This was met by a bit of silence.

"So, you admit you like him?" Nya said, surprised.

"I always knew I liked him, I just… Faris and I…I didn't know whether I hated him more that I cared for him." Her eyes glistened, whipping them she continued her quick trek across the forest as they followed Ventus's trail. "I don't want him to die thinking I still hate him, or that I'm still angry. And I want him to hear me say it."

"You really like him, don't you?" Bartholomew rode a flying golem, his face serious. "All of you care about him greatly I've noticed."

"I've always wanted a little sibling." Nya admitted, "Sometimes I'd get in arguments with my sister, being around Faris makes me understand her a little bit, and he's a fun guy to be around, when he's not brooding."

"Ditto, and to be honest, my life was boring before meeting him, I would have expected to join a powerful team of fourth-year students and just barrel through the trials. The only challenge would be from a group that happened to hold one of you guys in. I've taken the time to learn a lot more… and… I guess it feels good to go help the people at the slums from time to time, the illnesses they have, it could be easily treated if they had the money, but I guess I would have overlooked that if not for Faris." Katya grinned embarrassedly. "And I'm supposed to call myself a Protector of Life."

"Faris was the first human child to be comfortable around us." Alanna said, smiling, "He's full of secrets but he is my first human friend."

"And his cooking is delicious." Dusan added.

"Oh?" Bartholomew said, "I better make him my friend too," this elicited a few short chuckles from the group.

"We all owe Faris and you Venka," Morgan began, "I wonder how much more ahead we would have all been if we had known each other when we were younger."

"That sounds like an adventure I would have loved to have taken part in!" Nya added.

They continued on in silence, only stopping twice to make sure everyone kept up and they hadn't been followed. Ventus was gone, but his trail was still bright and glowing. It took them all of half an hour to finally catch up again, Ventus was flying circles around an area; diving towards what looked like an outgrowth of weeds every once in a while.

"These plants…" Alanna began.

"They don't belong in this forest, right?" Katya continued, "I updated my botany and geography for times like this."

"Alright, then let's just go in." Nya said, Morgan held her back.

"Katya?"

"Working on it…" Katya's eyes seemed to shimmer as her spell began to feel the area around the entrance. "Okay, there's an alarm of sorts in there. We've got to carefully destroy it… I'll isolate it's connection, someone else break it." _"Letta un mela duvard" (stop and quiet the ward)_

A quick shot of an arrow destroyed the mechanism and the group made their way inside. Ventus hopped unto Alanna's shoulder, hunching over to make as little space as possible. The group found to their surprise that no one tried to stop them. In fact, there was no one to be seen.

"Where is everyone?" Venka began to fear the worst, until they heard the sound of fighting. They began running towards it, Seya took the lead, hair glowing white and eyes radiating an imperial gold.

"Stay on your toes, expect any mages who happen to have white hair to be as strong and fast as I am, go for a kill shot every time, as soon as you see them drop begin sealing their movements and keeping their bodies from reconnecting, if they expend too much energy trying to reconnect they'll die, and if they dissipate it will take them at least days to reform."

"What are we talking about here Seya?" Morgan was worried, he remembered what Jaya told them, "Are they really as strong as Shades then?"

"Shades die when they're stabbed in the heart." Seya replied.

The wall next to them exploded, Katya was fast enough to block the debris, and Morgan conjured a quick gust of wind to blow it away. On the other side was a group of mages and fighters, many of whom charged the kids, only to run around them, as if sprinting away in fear.

"The spirits went crazy, so many of them escaped! Why'd they do that?!" One screamed, they continued streaming through.

"What are they running from…" Nya said cautiously.

"…We're about to find out."

_Danger! Dangerous! Run away! Go away! Flee!_  
Ventus began to shift uncomfortably, repeating this mantra to everyone's discomfort.

"…"

The area within the wall was still smoky and gloomy, and the sound of cracking and snapping, followed by a horrible choking gurgle put them all on edge. A scream, dripping with deranged malice was let out as something rapidly hurtled towards them, Venka held her hand out. _"Letta!"_ She nearly puked as she redirected the mangled corpse, twisted in an agonized fashion, to the side. A figure began to emerge from the smoke, tall and lean, hair a deep crimson, and eyes a bloody maroon.

"We are Hruk" He laughed, extending his hands.

"What the…" Katya raised her hands almost too late as a huge conflagration exploded around them.

"Keep alert!" Seya screamed, "The fire is merely-" As she was tackled by the shade, who wielded a sword.

"Hello child! I'll enjoy your blood!" The shade screamed shrilly, attempting to stab her. He was stopped when a bolt of lightning hit him dead on, causing his body to nearly explode if not for Seya holding it together with magic.

"In the heart!" She screamed as Nya rushed past, stabbing her sword straight into the monster's chest. He screamed in pain, howling with all his might as his skin seemed to rip apart, tearing at the seams as if the loose flaps of a poorly treated puppet. Hruk wailed, turning his head back and forth, back and forth, like a flag in the wind as he seemed to collapse.

"You kiiiiillled meeeee-!" He collapsed, "Just ki-dding!" He screamed. Nya screamed back in fear as she realized she stabbed the wrong part of the chest. Barely missing where his heart should have been. Hruk stood up casually, raising his fist to smash Nya into the floor, only to be blocked by two quick blade movements. He looked at his arm, or the stump of his arm, and wordlessly screamed at the Elven children, who covered their ears in pain, he began charging towards them, losing all levels of coherence, almost reaching them he was stopped, as if held on strings. Venka had a desperate look on her face, even using her magic on him felt, wrong. As if his very presence was an affront to everything natural. Even Seya hadn't felt so off even though the process that gave her those abilities were similar. Hruk turned to look at Venka, turning his head without moving his body, his neck twisting unnaturally. "Your light shines bright! It feels warm!" A shadowy aura began to suffuse his body as he began walking backwards, head still turned 180 degrees, eyes on Venka, hungry, evil eyes. Venka felt great fear as he began walking closer, and even greater fear as he began to invade her mind. All her friends began to struggle, this one shade, nearly overpowering them all.

As the Shade continued to walk Nya and Seya charged it, swinging their blades at it, he surprised Seya by catching her sword by letting her slice down his hand to his elbow joint, where the blade stuck. He smiled, punching her hard enough for her rib cracks to be audible. She crashed into the wall, white light glowing as her body began to heal, out of the fight for now.

Morgan reached into Faris's pack, taking out Faris's cannon, he aimed it at Hruk, firing it, Hruk's eyes widened as the burning ball of iron struck him, he looked at the hole in his stomach, laughing, his mental attack increased, forcing everyone still fighting into a state of immobilization.

_Go Away!_  
Ventus shrieked and charged Hruk, who smacked him away casually, blowing through his months of amassed wards. The crack of his bones on the ground and the blood that spilt was quickly followed by Alanna's enraged cry. This was enough to snap Venka back to attention, concentrating her magic she enhanced her mind, and everyone else's, bolstering their mental fortitude with magic, pinning him down they stopped his movements, and in a deft motion, Katya brought her sword down on his heart, but Hruk blocked it with his hand, screaming and laughing as it pierced his skin, jerking to a stop inches before his chest. His laughs were cut short when Ventus, recovering using the last of the amulet's magic, hopped to the back of his neck and tore at it, causing his head to go limp for a few seconds and the blade to plunge in deeply.

"No!" He screamed as he collapsed, body truly breaking apart. Before he fell, he launched a huge bolt of fire towards Ventus, Alanna leapt in the way, screaming some words in the ancient language, the flame struck her and she collapsed. Hruk's laughs were cut short as his body broke apart and 12 spirits rushed out of his body and towards the exit.

Katya immediately ran towards Alanna, her healing magic at the ready, Dusan tearfully next to her. "She'll be okay, the burns aren't deep, I can get rid of them now, but it will take a while."

"We don't have a while," Seya came out, angry, before two of the spirits could escape, she extended her hands. A high-pitched whine escaped them before they exploded into orbs of light that she absorbed into herself. As if on cue several demonic laughs were heard, echoing throughout the halls. She blew up the ceiling above the opening in the wall. "We have to find a place to hide for now!"

As they ran forward, they encountered more eviscerated and brutalized corpses. They finally found a room to the side, it was full of food supplies, barricading the door they camped inside, resting and healing their wounds.

"I'm alright, thank you, how's Ventus."

_Alive, beast is gone, hunted, scary, don't want to fight. Painful, find Faris, save friend…_

"Ditto buddy." Nya chuckled; she added a few spells unto her sword. She found herself trembling slightly, gritting her teeth she tightened her grip.

"Why was that thing so strong!?" Morgan groaned, he munched on several loafs of bread.

"It's a shade, what do you expect?" Seya sighed, her bones finally resetting. "The Spirit's size determines it's power."

They grimaced, remembering the beach ball sized spirit that escaped Hruk's corpse, and the tennis ball-sized ones that hadn't managed to escape Seya's attack.

"Can we absorb spirits?" Morgan asked.

"There's a concoction, poisonous to anyone with the incorrect body type. If you survive, then yes, if you don't you die."

"I'm perfectly okay living without trying those odds then." Morgan said, frowning. "Gods… and to think, the last two to slay a shade were a rider and an elf!"

"Yes, we are a group comprised of two elves, 6 young but talented mages, two of which were as strong or stronger magically compared to the shade, and a magically enhanced talking owl."

Ventus perked his head at the compliment.

_We live._

"Good point boy." Morgan chuckled. "Looks like I've lasted longer than you thought, huh Bartholomew?" He turned to look for the large boy, he began to pale. "Guys…"

"Damn them all!" Bartholomew rode a golem of a horse-like creature, he hated normal horseback riding, and this was almost no better, but it was that or be torn apart as he ran away from two shades. The shades had decided to indulge in the chase, running after the boy.

"Three strikes and you're out boy…" The female would call out to him. "Are you sure you don't want to give up now… We can have some fun before we say our goodbyes."

Bartholomew called back to watching her tear off the face of a fleeing cult member with her teeth. He definitely wasn't ready for a fun time. He took out two golems. One formed a flaming tiger, and the other formed a winged woman seemingly made of ice. _"Telda du fjandí"_ (Entrap the enemy) The tiger began to burn brighter as the icy angel unleashed a cooling mist, rapidly freezing the walls, floor, and ceiling. The ceiling began to crack and break down. The shades began to slip on the ice just as the tiger roared a combination of heat and wind. The force of its flames pushed the shades backwards on the ice and they were crushed under the rocks. Or so Bartholomew hoped. Those hopes were dashed after only a few minutes, he heard the shades scream loudly.

"I will wear your entrails!" The woman screamed.

Panicking Bartholomew looked around, finding a nice bit of rubble he leapt in to cover himself, taking out another clay doll he whispered into it. _"edtha" (me)_

The golem began gathering from the rocks and dirt around it, forming a facsimile of Bartholomew, he directed it to ride the golem horse and directed his flame and ice golems to follow after, directing them to continue to try and slow down the opponents. He hid behind the rubble, hiding his presence as best as he could he had the horse continue. He kept his head down and body covered despite his curiosity, until he remembered that Shades had an enhanced sense of smell. _Shit!_ Footsteps began approaching, he hurriedly took out a mirror and a few crystals, and another clay doll.

The shade's slowed to a halt at a narrower stretch of the hallway. "He stopped here, but the trail leads forward, it smells faintly forward, but it's the strongest here." The male said.

"Maybe he decided to rest before continuing? You saw how fat he was, even if that thing was moving for him, he must have been tired from holding on." They laughed cruelly. The shade turned left then right, she narrowed her eyes, in a pile of rocks was where the smell seemed to be the strongest, she slightly floated in the air to avoid making sounds, peaking over she spotted a shoe, and the boy's jacket, she turned to her partner, who smiled viciously.

"It seems he left; we might as well go after him." The shade's floated up, creating false versions that ran forward, the sounds of footsteps fading away. The shade's waited an indefinite amount of time, finally, a telling sigh of relief was let out. Screaming viciously the shades laughed peeking through the openings to see Bartholomew cowering before them. The female laughed.

"Good bye!" She brought her hand down to smash his face in like a soft fruit, and completely passed through it, her hand hit something else though, and the whole hall exploded in flames and shrapnel. The shades screamed, one of them clutched Bartholomew's jacket. "I'll eat that boy alive, starting with his arms and legs, so that he's alive as long as possible!" They screamed off in the direction of the golems. After a few more minutes Bartholomew phased out of the wall, which seemed to liquify, forming from the walls, as if they were an extra layer all along. Bartholomew sighed in relief, heart pounding, he looked at his crystal.

"Nearly empty…" He sprinted down the hallway in the opposite direction, probably moving with more urgency by himself than he ever had before, the mud-like golem slithered and slid after and in front of him, ready to alert and hide him should another shade show up. It wasn't another shade that found him, but a girl with white, messy hair, and green eyes. Bartholomew yelped, back pedaling as she rushed him, commanding his golem to stop her, it lasted all of five seconds before being crushed in roots. He looked in alarm as vines began sprouting from the walls and ceilings, grabbing on to and entrapping him. The girl walked up.

"Man… I didn't want to hafta work, now I gotta turn you in to the doctor…" She frowned.

Bartholomew's heart continued to beat quickly.

"Nah… too much work." Relief flooded him, only to be dashed away; "I'll just kill ya."

"Wait!" He cried out, whimpering as her fingertip barely pressed on his neck. "You don't wanna kill me, I'm no threat. I mean, my magic was so weak right? You can just let me go…"

"No no…" The girl said, "I can't even if you're weak you could be wily, you're just trying to get me to lower my guard."

"No! How about I give you something so you can trust me?!"

The girl released him, curious. Bartholomew straightened his tie, taking out a small box he revealed a bunch of sweets. The girl squealed, eating them. Bartholomew chuckled at the sight.

"Want one?" She offered a bit to him; he shook his head.

"More for my new, pretty friend."

"Aww… you're just saying that." Despite herself the girl blushed slightly. Bartholomew grinned, he continued.

"No no! You are the prettiest girl I've ever met, beauty and power, the full package! I'm honored you humored me! Now…" He smiled, bowing, "If you could just let me be on my way…"

"Oh no! The leader says I can't let anyone go around unsupervised."

"Then can you let me at least call and find my friends?"

"Sure!"

"Huh!?" Bartholomew looked at her dumbfounded, she looked at him innocently.

"Friends of yours are mine, too right? And it's too hard to find you all by myself."

Bartholomew shook his head, past the girl were the remains of three shades, a dark circle of purplish soot was normally all that remained of them, and three distinct circles of the stuff were present, surrounded by hundreds of different vines and roots. He shuddered to think of what might have happened to him. He turned to look again at the girl, who gave an innocent smirk before yawning, smiling ruefully he took out his pocket mirror. It was answered quickly, Morgan on the other end.

"Bartholomew! Thank goodness you're still alive!"

"Yeah, no thanks to you, I'm alive, but…"


	54. Chapter 54

"As you can see… Rembrant is guilty of a crime, the crime of succumbing to his fatigue. A lord as busy as him, and with the events that had happened? My good friends, it should come as no surprise that a boy as suspicious as Faris somehow slipped from the grasp of the law!" Rembrant sat in his defense booth, his lawyer waxed poetic to his defense over how the responsibilities of his fiefdom and section of the city kept him from paying attention to one simple boy. He also had the men show falsified evidence to Faris's involvement to the kidnappings.

The judge, a minor noble known for his integrity, looked upon Rembrant with an understanding nod. Most nobles dealt with many tasks at the same time, and it was impossible for any one person to keep tabs on everything at once. The fact Faris disappeared in a prison would normally be looked on as a break out, not investigations into corruption. "Thank you, would the prosecution like to begin its case?"

A young man in his early twenties stepped forward. Rembrant rolled his eyes, the man's attire and mannerisms reeked of common birth, and while he seemed cordial enough, he wasn't a man Rembrant would pay any real attention to. "Yes, thank you." The young man stepped forward. "Who is Faris Ser? A prodigy mage? A powerful and dangerous individual? Mass murderer?" He turned to the crowd of citizens, who had gathered to watch this case. "Before any of these? I ask the Jury to remember that Faris was a 10-year-old boy, in fact, he had reached his eleventh year on the second day of his prison sentence. If he was simply a disturbed child such actions would have been observed by the students around him, yet almost everyone we interviewed, even the ones he had defeated through the school sanctioned training events would often say that he was relatively nonconfrontational, only fighting if struck first." The crowd murmured uneasily to themselves. "Our investigations found some disturbing facts surrounding this entire incident."

As he said that, men began walking into the room, they carried several items on top of a flat mat, placing it on a table a crystal ball hovered down, a large mirror projecting the items began to float upwards, giving the citizens and nobles attending a good view of the items. The first items of note were several documents, many of which had pictures and notes on them. The man turned to one of the men who came in, the same bespectacled commissioner who arrested Faris, Gaudier, who stepped up, voice amplified by magic. "I am Commissioner Gaudier; I oversaw and led the investigation into the incident within the North-West 18th District."

"Thank you for introducing yourself. You are the one who arrested Faris in the first place correct?"

"Yes." The crowd looked on, intrigued.

"Please describe Faris's condition when you arrived."

"He was extremely injured, the hospital he was in described that he had received several chest lacerations that had proven most difficult to heal."

"Chest lacerations? Do you have a fairth of that that we may show the panel?" One was presented, causing many to look on in shock. Faris, who to many of them was simply a rogue mage who had committed a heinous crime was revealed to them for the first time. Now they saw he was a small child, not even an adolescent, struggling against horrific injuries. Many parents began to feel slightly self-conscious at their readiness to condemn the child. "Please describe what the doctors had said about the severity of his wounds."

"Yes, there had been a vigil of 9 Protectors of Life Mages situated at him at all times, each group slowly became exhausted. The wounds were never fully healed, only kept from growing, as it seemed as if his body itself was tearing itself apart. The doctors required aid from a third party to end up completely healing him."

"How would you describe his condition when you came to arrest him?"

Gaudier paused, as if trying to find the correct words, "He was in terrible shape, it was made no secret to most of us that he was already known for having below average magical stamina, so such an ordeal would have been likely taxing on his person. My orders though were to arrest him and have him booked in penitentiary until the case was completed."

"Who ordered his arrest?"

Gaudier looked at Rembrant, "It was Lord Rembrant, he had stated some men of his while checking the area were alerted to an incident taking place in an abandoned soldier garrison. And that the incident may have been related to Faris Ser."

"What did you discover in the garrison?"

"The corpses of about 30 individuals all burned to death, as well as over 150 graves outside, a few of them marked."

"What was in the graves?"

"The bones of children, it seems a partition of dirt was blocked off, wood cannibalized from the warehouse used to make coffins." Pictures of the graves and coffins within were shown.

"Please describe the coffins."

Gaudier smiles lightly, "While the wood was taken from the warehouse, it was smooth, and several enchantments were found, minor ones not requiring too much energy, they preserved the bones and corpses within, and prevented maggots from destroying the coffins. The coffins themselves could only have been fashioned with a mix of craft and magic."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because of the number of coffins, and the freshness of the graves, someone had taken the time to dig and bury the graves for the children only recently, based on our investigation mages' findings the spells used to kill the 30 corpses and the spells used to remove and turn the wood into usable coffins came from the same person."

"How can you tell that?"

"Magic comes with its own unique signature and residue that changes depending on the individual who casts it, as distinct per individual as a fingerprint is."

"Did you discover who the magic belongs to?"

"Yes, Faris Ser cast the magic." The audience gasped.

"So, he is the murderer!" One shouted, which caused the crowd to become riled up.

"Order in the court NOW!" The judge roared, pounding his gavel, "Hurry though please, you are beginning to draw out the court's patience."

The lawyer looked slightly flustered, "I apologize your honor I-"

"Just get on with it."

He breathed in and out, returning to Gaudier. "So Faris both cast the magic immolating the 30 individuals, and also cast the magic creating the graves?"

"Yes, our autopsy report shows that while all the corpses in the graves were below the ages of 13, the immolated corpses were all at least 25 years of age."

"Did Faris's magic residue leave off the children?"

"Yes"

"Is it connected to their deaths?"

"No, the children suffered blunt force trauma from several different sources, magic had no part in their deaths, and unlike the 30 Faris immolated, the children had been dead for several months to even several years, with the oldest being 9 years and 8 months deceased, and with the freshest corpse being 7 months old."

"7 months old? Do you know when Faris arrived in the capital?"

"About 5 months ago when we arrested him, which would have been a week after we began the investigation." The crowd murmured words of shock, if the children were killed before Faris's arrival, then he had nothing to do with their deaths. The 30 though were still in question, but the case no longer seemed as open and shut anymore.

"Thank you for your time Sir. Gaudier, before I call you off, what are the chances that given the information your team collected Faris killed those 150 children?"

"Virtually none, Faris's arrived too late to be part of the children's disappearances or deaths, and during the freshest corpse's date of decease he would have still been home in his village, with statements from both villagers and his parents corroborating the information. In fact, documents show his first utilization of spell casting took place 6 months ago, under the tutelage of a state mage on their way to the city, where they apprehended a group of Black Hand remnants attempting to kidnap the two children heading into the city. It also makes little sense that if Faris killed the 30 men through immolation, he would take the time to kill the 150 children without magical means, and it is impossible for the corpses to be in their level of decay if they were killed only over a month ago and were not tampered with through magic."

"No further questions your honor." The lawyer took a seat.

"Would the defense like to cross-examine the witness?"

The defense lawyer stood up.

"How accurate is this magic?" He asked.

"It is accurate over 99% of the time."

"Does that mean there's a chance for inaccuracy? However slight?"

"No and yes."

"What do you mean no and yes?"

"The inaccuracies come not from the spell itself, but from the wording and user, we have a dozen different mages search and analyze, we then check for any outliers and question them precisely on what they did, then we have mages replicate that method and others replicate the original method. Over this time, we've discovered a few inaccuracies here and there, but at this point for the past two years, our investigation spells can find out the age of decease of a several year decayed corpses down to the week. Which for this case is more than accurate enough to fulfill our needs, as it normally takes a year before the date of expiration becomes difficult to pin down to the day. My point still stands."

The lawyer looked like he was going to say something, but turned to sit.

"Any further questions?" The judge asked.

"No, your honor." Rembrant was taken aback, the evidence found was impossibly precise, he hadn't imagined the capabilities of magic to look into such detail. He looked angrily at his lawyer; their entire case had rested on decrying Faris's character. The fact he still murdered should have been enough, but given the fact he wasn't responsible for the deaths of the children, and had taken the time to bury them…

"I'd like to call my second witness, Martha Hannasdaughter." The crowd looked on curiously as a pretty if tired looking blond woman walked unto the podium. Rembrant's eyes nearly popped from his sockets, his men had told him she had died before them. Be that as it were, he believed he needed not worry, at best she was a character witness, nothing more. The lawyer walked up to her. "Are you feeling tired miss Martha?"

She smiled, "Yes, I have had a trying few months."

"I apologize for the inconvenience then, tell me, when did you meet Faris?"

"About 2 months ago, he had been seeking me out and found my son."

"Your son?"

"Yes, he was playing with other friends at the time, I had told him to go, I didn't want him staying home fretting over me."

"Over you ma'am? What would cause him to fret over you?"

"Objection!" Rembrant's lawyer yelled. "He is leading the witness!"

"Overruled, he has not made specifics, but only asked if an event had occurred."

"Thank you, again, what would cause him to worry about you?"

Martha smiled painfully, "I had been fighting against Murk."

The crowd gasped, Murk was a disease that was guaranteed to kill anyone over 20 who hadn't already received it, even noblemen could be killed by it if not treated in time, and even then the best they could do was wait for the person to fight off the disease, which was normally a costly procedure, by all respects she should be a dead woman, and her child motherless.

"Murk, how long had you been suffering under the affliction?"

"I had been feeling under the weather for 2 weeks before, but then it overcame me and I collapsed, my son barely dragged me to bed and I had been there until Faris and his friends had come to see me."

"Did you notice anything about Faris when he arrived?"

"Yes… he was tender and polite, and the youngest amongst them, my son told me he had shared food with him and the other children he was playing with, enough that they could take some with their families. He also came to tell me something."

"What did he come to tell you?" Martha paused, her breath catching as tears welled in her eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm sure it must be difficult, please, tell us what he came to tell you."

"He told me, my husband died, he was a coach driver for the state mages, and he had been hired to take the three that had come to Faris's village to take him and another to the city. Faris told me he had died during the attack done by the Black Hand, but that they had been stopped. He then gave me his ring, a locket belonging to him, and several hundred gold to help me."

"Was that all he did?"

"No, he and his friends healed me."

"Healed you? And you are certain that is correct?"

"Yes." The lawyer turned to the evidence, showing two documents, one was a medical record showing Martha had just been diagnosed with Murk, and that she could not afford care, and was ferried back home, for all accounts she would have been dead if not for Faris's supposed intervention.

"Did Faris do anything else after that?"

"He had defended against some thugs in our slums."

"Can you describe the thugs?"

Martha frowned, "Cruel bastards they were, they would demand money for our 'protection' but it was merely tribute to avoid being beaten. If people couldn't pay up, they'd take children as collateral. They had been targeting me and my son, perhaps the fever made me delirious but that day I had forgotten the danger, I merely wanted my son to have fun with his friends and not worry about his dying mother. I know there were at least a few dozen of them, the ones who targeted us were scarred all over, and one of them had a green tinted dagger, like it was poisonous or something."

The lawyer presented a dagger with a burnt hilt, "Does this match the dagger you describe?"

Martha nodded. "It's the exact same one, even has that scratch down the middle."

"What happened after you recovered?"

"Faris would visit often, he quickly became friendly with the children, he was only barely older than a few of them, most of the older kids stayed and helped their parents. And the food he brought was helpful to all the families. In fact, many people went to him to heal them and such."

"Did they not know he was a student mage? And him using magic was unauthorized?"

Martha scowls, "I doubt anyone's taken the time to come down to our slums and so much as spit on us. He was the first boy to pay attention and try to help, and he saved so many lives over the two months I think its folly to even consider what he did bad. If he had stuck to the rules, I would have been dead in an hour after meeting him." She looks at the crowd, "And lord knows no one can afford a mage in the slums." A few of the nobles shifted uncomfortably as many in the crowd murmured angry assent. Faris was beginning to look less like a thug and more like a hero.

"How would you describe Faris's relationship with the children?"

"He was so tender and kind, like a big brother, even though he wasn't related, and he looked so different from us all, he felt like family."

"No further questions your honor."

"The defense would like to cross-examine the witness." Rembrant's lawyer walked over to Martha. "Ms. Martha, had the slums always been your home?"

"No, when I had received no word about my husband for months, I had to look for work, even though I found time as a scullery maid it was not enough, I could not afford the amenities and was forced into the slums in order to afford food for Dustin and I."

"Dustin being?"

"My son."

"Yes, now, when Faris arrived, was he alone?"

"No."

"Who was he with?"

"Friends I believe, all children a few years older than him."

"Did they merely watch as he used his magic?"

"No, they helped as well, two used their magic to keep me alive as the others went to gather ingredients, and two were outside keeping the thugs from entering and harassing me."

"Oh? They used their magic?"

"Yes."

"Can you describe the ones who used magic on you?"

"Yes, one was a brown-haired girl with soft blue eyes, she was the older of the two, the other had fiery red hair, and green eyes, she was such a beautiful young girl, they both were."

"So, he led multiple students to using magic against school rules?"

"To save my life."

"Did he, or did he not, cast magic without authorization?"

"Do you have a child sir?"

The lawyer was taken aback. "It is highly inappropriate to be asking me personal questions."

"It isn't personal then for me to assume that like everyone else in this room, you have a mother." Martha asked evenly. This was followed by several chuckles that echoed through the room. Martha.

"No further questions." The lawyer glowered at the woman and returned to his station.

Rembrant was fuming, his lawyer was at a loss, and was public sentiment was clearly on Faris's side. Martha's story had touched a cord, and the idea that the men Faris killed were the same men kidnapping the children was beginning to cement itself in people's psyche. Rembrant was getting angry, not only was the case putting Faris in a good light and defeating his Prosecution's work, it also would likely mean the original trial would be weakened. As it was, there was nothing he could do but wait and see how to recover from this debacle. Hopefully in a few years' time he would regain face.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the Jury, over the past day the defense had done their very best to portray Rembrant's innocence by claiming he was too busy to look after Faris. And they had attempted to destroy Faris's name by citing the crime he was involved in. I have attempted to show that the crime was more nuanced that first thought, and that Faris has been needlessly straw manned in order for Rembrant to escape scrutiny. But over the course of the investigation we had made a startling discovery. Rembrant wasn't just corrupt. I will now call upon our third witness."

A city guard entered the witness stance. Rembrant was confused, he had no idea how this man played into the situation.

"What is your name?"

"Duncan sir."

"Thank you, Duncan, what is your occupation?"

"City guard sir, I normally take the night shift."

"Where were you 3 days ago?"

"I was outside the city walls, doing a routine outdoor patrol, sometimes poachers and bandits liked to set up camp close to the city walls in order to avoid animals, we send troops out to find and question any suspicious persons."

"Who did you find that night?"

"We found an escaping convict. An individual by the name Uron Barkley."

"What crime had Uron Barkley committed?"

"He had murdered a colleague and his family, as well as burned down their house, he had also resisted arrest, severely injuring a guard attempting to arrest him."

"What prison had he been in?"

"The Old Refurbished one in the Northwest."

"Who owns that prison?"

"Lord Rembrant does." Rembrant was fuming, the man was an idiot, he was one of the fresh-faced fools who had taken for granted the greatness of Jahat, deciding to nearly ruin an operation because of jealousy over a friend. He had wanted the man to rot in jail where he'd do nothing.

"Did you find anything on Uron?"

"Yes, a map of the city plans, including guard shifts, as well as several documents."

"Who did these documents belong to?" The lawyer began to show the documents to the citizens and Rembrant's face began to pale. He was about to stand but felt as if someone was glaring at him, glancing up he saw Queen Nasuada, behind her stood Trianna, and to her side were Lord Jahat, and Magister Farooq.

"These documents all are marked with the signature of Lord Rembrant, as well as his noble stamp. If you see in these documents, they show that 165 children had disappeared under his watch, and that someone had discovered and sabotaged his collection team." The lawyer showed the picture of the injured Faris, "That person was Faris Ser! The document highlights that Faris had been becoming an obstacle, and that he had lost his best servant because of the boy. Conveniently one of Rembrant's servants had been tried for attempting to assassinate Faris. Faris had not escaped the prison, he had been taken, taken for torture and experimentation all for the reviving of the Black Hand!"

The crowd erupted, even Noble men began shouting, the anti-mage faction the loudest of them all, Rembrant had been a major part of their movement, the fact evidence proved he was a member of the Black Hand weakened them politically, and since it was revealed in such a public venue, they would lose power immeasurably.

Lord Jaya smiled. "Check"

"ORDER!" The judge proclaimed, voice amplified by magic to an extreme degree, to which it felt as if the room shook with his reverberations. "This is quite the evidence, whilst that is his seal, what proof is there that it is his documentation?" Rembrant smiled. While the judge was seemingly neutral; he had already paid him off, if not for Nasuada's presence in the courtroom the Judge would have merely thrown out the case. As it were even with this evidence brought before him, even if the jury tried him as guilty the judge would likely order the least punishing choice, then it was just a matter of being situated in a prison under his control, even if they seized his assets, he still had enough of them under his mercy to smuggle himself out. They didn't yet know about-

"I have two pieces of documentation then to show to the public." The prosecution's lawyer presented a first document. Rembrant blanched, it was his tax documentation, the forged document. "I call on Magistrate Methuselah." An old man in regal uniform strode into the courtroom, he looked ancient, wrinkles knotting every part of his face, short silver hair, and impressive straight silver beard, groomed well enough to impress even a dwarf. The old man walked slowly but with dignity, his age shown in his stride, but merely adding to the aura of wisdom he seemed to exude. Everyone stopped to look, Magistrate Methuselah was well known, being part of Galbatorix's political circle, and in charge of the treasury due to his meticulous and by the book nature. Money did not interest him, but he prided himself on keeping fair accounts. "Sir Mathias Methuselah, is that your name?" The Lawyer began.

"Well we'd be in an awkward situation if that wasn't my name." Methuselah's tone was somber and straight forward, showing no hint of humor or sarcasm. The lawyer swallowed nervously.

"I apologize, just following procedure, may I present you this document?" He hands the forged tax document to Methuselah. "Do you know what this document is?"

"Yes, this is the tax documentation submitted by Lord Rembrant to account for his spending for the past year."

"How can you tell that?"

"It has his signature, and his house seal stamped on it, in the top right corner, like on all his documents."

"May I show you this document?" The lawyer hands him a second document. "Can you tell me what this document is?"

Methuselah frowns, "These are Lord Rembrant's real tax documents for the past year, as well as his real documents the 7 years prior, a total of 8 years of falsified documents."

"Objection he's stating opinion!" Rembrant's lawyer yelled. The prosecution's lawyer was about to yell in retort when the judge shouted.

"Sustained! He cannot make any such opinions, merely only state what is fact."

"Your honor, he is making a claim, not opinion, he did not state what he thought, but what they were."

"Are you countering my-"

"Judge…" The room turned cold as all heads turned to the woman who spoke just now. Nasuada had been silent throughout the entire case, she attended most high-profile cases when she had the opportunity to do so, but she rarely, if ever, spoke. Everyone standing immediately bowed as she rose to stand.

"My queen." The judge did his best to hide the panic in his voice.

"I do not remember where it was stated in the law that a statement from a witness could be a matter of opinion when not phrased as one. Forgive my lack of insight, but did the prosecution lead the witness with the question?"

"…No…"

"Thank you, now, is the witness's statement seemingly opinionated in its tone?"

"…Perhaps?" Many people looked in surprise, the judge was attempting to question Nasuada? But for the judge, it was a matter of saving face and protecting his family. His son had roped in with the wrong people, committed vile promiscuity with an unwitting young woman, who he later killed, and had gotten into debt to great for him to pay off. Faced with the shame of it being revealed to the public he would have despaired had Rembrant not paid the debt in full, with extra to silence his son's debtor's. With threat of his son's disgrace being ousted to the public he had no choice but to look favorably on Rembrant no matter what the court found.

"Perhaps?" Nasuada smiled. "I see, to you the witness's statement seemed opinionated, alright, carry on then." She sat down.

After a bit of uncomfortable silence, the lawyer spoke again. "These documents, which may or may not be Rembrant's real tax documents. They have a signature and seal on correct?"

"Yes." Methuselah rolled his eyes.

"And the signature and seal resemble the signature and seal on Rembrant's established, legally verified document correct?"

"Yes, yes it does."

"Thank you, and is this a real document?"

"Yes, it is verifiably real, only an idiot would believe these 8 documents to be fake." Methuselah turned to look at the judge, "An idiot or a liar." The judge merely stared ahead, attempting to look as neutral as possible.

"Erm… well, why do you believe these documents are real?"

Methuselah grinned widely, "What? Are you all fools as well?" Methuselah shows the forged tax document to the crystal, projecting it to the crowd, "At the end of last year, Rembrant hosted a ball, that very much is established truth, any idiot would remember that. He normally hosts these end-of-the-year-balls, and he had been doing so for the past 10 years. Last year in particular was quite extravagant, he even hired an opera house, a special opera house."

"Special? how so?"

"I'm sure you know of Garden in the Sun?" Many people nodded along. "They are a very expensive troop, they charge 1000 gold per hour for private events during the holiday, due to the fact their members would normally be home with family, with 500 gold for each additional play other than the first 2 they bring. Attendees all account for there being 6 plays, and the ball lasting for 6 hours, that is 9000 gold, and that is just the cost of the group. Yet for the noted expenses in the document only a fool would think is true, the total cost for the ball amounts to 5000. And to double check I had taken an account of the troop's earnings and expenditure, they account for every single venue they take, and Rembrant's end of the year ball is the last mark on their earnings statement, where they received a substantial 10000 gold. You can't even argue that Rembrant put the payment under another name, because his fake document does not even have an expenditure that reaches 10000. But his purchases are reflected off the true documents." The forgery was shown, missing the payment, followed by the opera house's documents, noting the payment, and Rembrant's true documentation."

"These documents were found with the missives written that claim Rembrant's traitorous actions. They note several things, compared to the forgeries, Rembrant taxes his citizens much higher than the norm, under his rule more than half the number of citizens were driven into slums. A large sum of gold had been ferried to and from, labelled 'samples'. And the dates of several of these transfers match the weeks children had gone missing. And of course, the document itself claims that 165 children had been lost already due to Rembrant's actions. The documents also reveal that Rembrant hired the same men who harassed Martha. These men had been on and off acting on his behalf for the past 8 years, right when the disappearances began, the past quarter's tax statement, the real one, reveals that Rembrant had lent several hundred gold to his servant, who was arrested and executed for his attempted assassination on Faris Ser." The lawyer looked around, "Rembrant and his group have spent the last few months trying to paint Faris as a bad person, doing their best to keep it sensational in order to keep any attention off his neglect. We find out that the reason he acted as such was because he had something to hide. Faris did kill those men, but those men were undoubtedly responsible for the deaths of over fifty-and-one-hundred children. Faris was said to visit the slums quite a bit. And witness statements revealed he was friends to the citizens there, friendly with the children, cordial with the adults. More than likely the brigands brought him to their warehouse, believing he was a suitable child to match whatever despicable criteria Rembrant had in store. Unfortunately for them, Faris likely witnessed the several corpses which had likely been stored in unsanitary conditions and left to rot. Such a scene would traumatize any normal person, and galvanize many to act. Faris did wrong in killing yes, he should have arrested those men, if he had, perhaps Rembrant would have been caught sooner, but this document shows that he had not done it to silence them either, that Rembrant found his actions against his interest, and that Faris was an issue to him. Faris had no reason to suspect a greater threat, because he was not privy to that, he was just a kind child, exposed to man's ugliness, but given the power to burn it away." The lawyer smiled sadly, "But he was thrown in prison, labeled a monster for avenging children, and now he's gone, another child fallen victim to Rembrant, who from the looks of things plan for the rest of us to follow soon after."

Lord Rembrant fumed, all his hopes, ruined, because… he looked at the picture of Faris. "That stupid boy!" He screamed, "Fine then! Yes! I'm part of the black hand!" He took out his ring. "But unfortunately for you all! I will destroy you! You were fools allowing me to get this close! He began to laugh maniacally as light began to gather around him, the people began to panic as the building began to shake, running to flee only for a flash of light to erupt, followed by the sound of the explosion, but nothing was destroyed.

Rembrant looked around in shock, he in a barren rocky area, the only real thing being a chair, his orb was about to explode killing him with it. As he looked around, he dropped it, attempting to run, he fell as an arrow hit his leg, looking up he saw his son in the distance trembling.

"Son! Help your father he-" He paused; his son was holding a bow. "You! Ungrateful wretch! You dare raise your hand against your father?!" He had exhausted himself concentrating into the orb, and could not get away in time, resigning himself to his fate he at least held the satisfaction he would kill his bastard of a son alongside him.

"Actually…" Rembrant turned, seeing Lord Jaya casually walking over to Yacob. "I believe your son is quite selfless, protecting the rest of his family and assets in exchange for one traitor's life." He smiles, "And eternal loyalty to me, it seems you are the ungrateful wretch. You let your senseless devotion get the better of you. And soon Faris will be found, and you'll be a distant memory."

"How! How did I think I was there?!"

Jaya winked, "A magician never reveals all his secrets, and don't worry, they think you were there too." Jaya took Yacob by the shoulder, the boy looked shaken, dropping his bow in fear and disgust as Jaya led him away. "Oh… and Rembrant?"

"What the hell do you want?" Rembrant was done, defeated, Lord Jaya had beaten him, if he had those documents, he likely knew who all the traitors were, and he had cemented the strength of the pro-mage faction. Faris now served as a martyr, a boy who had used his magic to save lives and avenge hundreds of children that he as an anti-mage supporter mercilessly allowed to be murdered. He had become the perfect villain for their story, his temper allowed him to play into their plan, if he had known Lord Jaya had pulled some trick, at the least he'd be alive. The orb began to glow bright white, it was going to explode, killing him in a few short seconds.

"Never mind, no piece of advice would stick anyway, though try not to splatter too much…" Jaya teleported out, Yacob in tow, they arrived in Nasuada's war chamber, Nasuada and Trianna, as well as several mages and warriors were already waiting for them.

"How went it?" Nasuada asked.

Lord Jaya smiled, "Yacob proved more loyal to the crown and honor than to his father." He patted Yacob on the shoulder. "You can leave boy." He didn't say anything after, Yacob didn't need to hear it either, he immediately ran out of the room, doing his best to keep his composure. Lord Jaya watched him go, a half smile on his face, he turned to face the room. "What? His mother and sister are alive and waiting for him, I merely had them tour my garden."

"Any idea on Faris's location?" Nasuada asked sharply.

"Yes, I had already sent a squad out to catch him and apprehend the enemy, they should be on site and beginning their mission anytime now."

"Are you certain you sent enough?" Trianna asked, "The black hand is mostly gone, but the few who survived were all frightfully skilled, their secrets could have easily passed down to impressionable fanatics."

"I sent three members of the counsel, as well as two triples. As well as a squadron of elite anti-mage warriors and 2 warmage units, any larger and our forces within the castle would suffer too greatly."

The others nodded to his logic. Nasuada smiled grimly, "It seems you've won this round."

Jaya smiled, "I merely wish for the best for humans, same as you all, my views and methods may differ, but we aren't enemies."

"In that respect I must say I need to thank you, hearing it straight from the horse's mouth allowed us the undeniable ability to use the documents you had stolen to find more members of the black hand infiltrating. Two of them had already made moves to leave the city and were apprehended, one of them dying while attempting a suicide attack like Rembrant's, the others are quiet, but we are positioning our forces in good position. They will be captured soon."

Lord Jaya smiled, "All that's left then is waiting for news of the Faris recovery team…"


	55. Chapter 55

"You really like talking about the city don't you." The soldier turned to his captain.

"Hello! Captain sir!" He straightened to a smart salute, swallowing the mouthful of his sandwich he was eating.

"At ease good man." The captain smiled, tapping his shoulder. "I'm thankful you volunteered to come in tonight Sam."

"Thank you, sir!" Sama responded, his light brown eyes shaking with excitement. "I'm just doing my duty to protect this city and this kingdom."

"And the queen!" A sitting soldier joked, causing chuckles from others.

A sharp look from the captain quieted them down. "Well men, I just came to check up on you, you did well sitting post, so eat your fill and rest, another soldier will let you know when it's your shift once more." The men saluted the captain and he took his leave.

Once he left, Sam glared at the soldier.

"Come on Dean! What even was that?"

"Oh please, we all know you've had a massive attraction for the queen since she was coronated." The soldiers chuckled, one held two tomatoes to his face. "Oh, my goodness, she's so lovely, I swear to defend this kingdom she leads till the end of my days!"

Sam's face twisted in irritation, "oh come off it." He stomped out to cool his face in the night air. As he made his way to the edge of the wall, he noticed very few guards. "Weird…" He mused, walking towards one of the main guard towers, the massive cobblestone wall led to a large tower in the corner, 4 ladders all leading to the top. As Sam climbed up, he began hearing the sound of scuffling cloth covered boots and muted choking, something dripped on his face, and wiping it revealed blood in the moonlight. Holding in his scream he slowly climbed up with one hand, other hand gripping his arming dagger. _Just like the drills Sam._ He reached the top barely, watching as three figures in dark red cloaks finished off the tower guards and were about to destroy the alarm bell and signal flames. Adrenaline bursting Sam shouted out, "FOR THE KINGDOM!"

The intruders flinched as he charged forward with the speed of a charging bear, the crystal in his neck piece gleaming dull grey as he body-slammed one of the intruders with enough force to bowl him over the tower. The surprise and shock caused the man to shriek as he felt to his death. The other two were at Sam's neck in an instant, daggers dripping in poison as they attempted to cut him down. Sam whispered this time. "for Nasuada!" The crystal began to glow a blue, the daggers stopping short of his neck. Retaliating with a vengeful fury Sam attempted to stab one of the men. He flinched as the dagger veered off path. The assassins tried striking him, uttering words in the ancient language as well. Their attacks did not land, but Sam felt the crystal protecting him weaken.

_"__You'll notice when you feel heavier, the crystal will begin taking your energy to protect you, when that happens, unless you're trying to save a life, run away and regroup." Sam nodded intently as his guard captain handed him the neck piece and imbedded the crystal into the socket. "You've done well Samuel, do your kingdom proud."_

Sam grit his teeth. "FOR THE KINGDOM!" He swung an inhumanly fast punch, knocking down the cultist. He attempted to stab the last cultist who screamed out another short phrase in magic. Sam's body began to rapidly lose strength, but before he collapsed, he cut the trigger rope to the bell and tackled the two assassins, taking both of them with him as they began to tumble towards the ground. Tears streaming from the speed at which they were hurtling towards the ground, Sam began to speak, "For Nas-uuugh!?" He coughed blood as two daggers stabbed into his back, squirming as he felt his body fizzle in pain as the Seithr oil did its work. Before he lost conciousness he screamed out. "To warn my loved ones!" Even as he did, the warning bell tolled, as it did, the other towers began to ring, the area was illuminated with magic, just as hundreds of figures in black cloaks began to clamber over the walls, led by three figures with deep red hair and equally red eyes. "INTRUDERS!" Was Sam's final cry before the poison took his lungs.

Jaya opened his eyes, "It's begun… damnable curse." Jahat's spell prevented him from warning anyone that she would invade, all he could do was order a slight increase in the guard count for the night, and luckily it seemed that they had been able to rally a warning call. He turned to his friend Farooq. The Surdan nursed his family heirloom, a bracelet full of precious metals and crystals. "Are you ready to fight friend?"

Farooq snorted, "Of course, but are you?"

Jaya smirked. "Of course, hopefully though this means their minor base is left rather undefended…"  
…

"Did I do something to offend you?" Bergan asked, the mage in front of him had a cross look on her face. The signs of battle were apparent over his fac e and body and the face and body of all the mages and warriors in the squad of fifty, squirming below them were countless men and women, all of whom had a tattoo of a black hand clutching a heart somewhere on their body. Bergan turned again to look at the woman who glared at him, a few years ago he could have counted on he as a friend and teacher. Maya Chamberlain, vice-guild master of the Wandering Blade, stared at him before angrily turning away. Bergan thought back to when the squads had been deployed.

It had been an uneventful beginning, many of the warriors trained together and had a sense of comradery the mages couldn't really share, of course that was due to their nature.

"Hey! Bergan!" Bergan had turned to Maya; her squad was quite close to his as they made their way into the forest.

"Didn't Celica order that we fan out and keep a perimeter?" He had inquired.

"Celica also said I'm in charge when she wasn't around, so by that matter, how about you don't question me." Maya's eyes flashed dangerously. "I don't understand just what the council sees in you to make you one of their members, almost like it wasn't just 6 months ago that I gave you a thrashing in the guild tournament."

"First of all, that only pertains to guild matters, and this isn't a simple guild matter." Bergan clenched his fists as they continued their ride through the forest. He patted his horses' neck, "One student was kidnapped, and several others disappeared to find them."

"And those several others are the _prodigy_ brats, right? I doubt this much fanfare would be wasted over normal students. Nepotism at its finest."

"One of those brats, is our boss's little sister." Bergan said, he smiled at Maya's scowl, she was always known for trying to rile her opponent up. "And regardless of what you call nepotism, I for one don't fault the Thirteen for being human enough to try and rescue their family members."

"You wouldn't, but I do." She growled, "They have a duty to their mages, sending 20 mages and 30 trained warriors into god knows what only to rescue one first year foolish enough to break one of the few strict doctrines of the society we live in." She shook her head and urged her horse forward; they flew through the forest. Bergan did not urge his horse to try and catch up, instead, he and his squad continued down the path they had planned out, perhaps that was why they noticed.

"Captain!" He turned to one of the warriors, Brigman, he was close to retiring but was an accomplished soldier. "A red light to the north east." Bergan followed his gaze to and saw what looked like a trail of red light, slowly fading away, without another word he signaled his men to follow him, he redirected his steed to follow the dying light.

_Commander Celica._

_I read you loud and clear Bergan, what's up?_

_I'm following a trail of light, perhaps the children left a marker to let them know where they were headed, if it leads to something, I'll alert you._

_Alright, let me know as soon as you run into trouble, alert Maya and Merigold as well, they are the closest to your position, I'll contact Rakus and the two of us will try and engage your location._

_Thank you._ Bergan tightened his hold on the reigns, kicking slightly he urged his horse to go a tiny bit faster, the trail of light seemed to disappear even quicker, he began to worry if the children were hurt or in danger, as that was normally why spells built to last long tended to fade. Eventually, he came to a divot in the ground. The trail of light ended right in front of what looked to be a massive trap door. Bergan held his hand, slowing his men, alerting Celica, it took all of five minutes for Maya to join, followed by a pleasant looking woman with green eyes and blonde hair plaited into one giant braid. "Thank you for coming Merigold… Maya." He nodded to the two of them. Like Maya, Merigold was another of the Triples, mages considered of the ability level to become a council member. Though Merigold didn't seem all that interested in trying to replace Lady Sona, or anyone else for that matter when it came to becoming a new member of the Thirteen.

"Of course, Lord Bergan," Merigold smiled, "It's better if all the teams work together. We need to be careful. We have no idea what we are running into."

"That's why I believe it's better for us to wait for Lady Celica and Lord Rakus to join us." Bergan said.

"What?! Absolute foolishness and cowardice. Those children may yet be in danger!" Maya yelled. Bergan cocked one eye as he stared at her incredulously, but she ignored him. "Mathan, open the door we must investigate at once." The warrior she commanded sighed, muttering something about two-faced wenches and stupid orders. He walked to the door, he found it surprisingly simple to open. Peering inside he began to backpedal quickly, taking out his sword.

"Arm yourselves! What did you see!" Bergan took out his blade and began applying his wards, his fellow mages followed suit. The soldier did not answer, but he didn't need to, they all felt it, a wave of dread filled their stomachs as the smell of blood and rot met them. In the quiet of their tenseness they heard a pair of footsteps. Each man and woman prepared in their own way, gripping their blades or bows or preparing to sling their spells. They were all veterans of combat, each and every single one had spent at least two years out in the war against the golden horde, those feelings met them again. No one spoke, for there was no need. Everything was communicated with their stances, the way they breathed, pensive and tight, and through the steel in their eyes. As the steps grew louder two figures slowly popped out into view. Without hesitation Bergan conjured a compressed ball of flames that he launched towards the figures, Maya was a beat behind him, launching a barrage of lightning, their fellow mages were not too far behind, launching magic as quickly as possible, burning, freezing, slicing, crushing, any host of effects, but their general motive was the same, destroy the monsters in front of them. The Shades, injured slightly, the male missing a few fingers that looked frostbitten off, and the female covered in several burns, smiled at this volley of magic launched their way, they extended their hands, expending a large service of magic to obliterate the volleys before them before it even reached.

"Look Yolin," The female said, "More humans, do you think the fat one is with them?"

"Unfortunately, I don't see them Vulna," The male said, frowning, "But… they did attack us with magic, they must be friends." He blocked a sword swing from Mathan, who had been closest. The shade cocked his head when the sword did not snap in his grip, and instead looked to be making him bleed slightly. "Oh? Magically enhanced weaponry." He looked at the soldier. "I wonder how long it lasts…" Smiling he yanked it from the soldier's hand, breaking the man's hand. Grabbing the sword, he swung it at the man's head, he widened his eyes, impressed as the man was flung to his side. "And warded armor, wow!" He turned his head, surprising the soldier who had attempted to attack his flank, deflecting his thrust easily he grabbed his opponent's sword and struck him 9 times in quick succession before he could even hit the ground, his wards caved and the solder gasped as the blades ran through him like a knife through warm butter. He laughed. Maya had already leapt towards him, concentrating energy into her fist, but the female shade was faster, blocking her punch.

"No cheating, let us ladies play together!" The shades laughed as their minds began to attack everyone in the vicinity, it was all the mages could do to defend themselves, luckily the warriors were trained for facing stronger opponents and their minds could hold, for the time being. They spread out to surround the shades, attacking in pairs of twos and threes in order to not get in each other's way too much. Magic sent at them was blocked by the mages, who fought tooth and nail to keep the shades from devising a way to bypass their wards. The shades easily fought. Attacking and defending with impunity as they batted away the swings of their assailants like an adult would parry the light fists of a toddler. Soldier's barely avoided death as their wards kept them alive.

_Bergan!_

_Merigold?_ Bergan turned to see Merigold, she was chanting, eyes closed, the fact she could spare a message to him even in this turmoil was incredible indeed.

_I need you to lend me your energy, the soldiers…_

_I understand. _Bergan retreated some, he took out his crystal and handed it to Merigold.

"Soldiers!" Merigold shouted, holding her crystal and his. "Switch from defensive settings to attack settings! You won't win otherwise!"

"Oh, shut it you!" One of the shades launched a fire ball towards Merigold, only to have Bergan deflect it.

"I and Maya will take on one, the rest concentrate on the other!" He charged towards the female Shade, who was contending with Maya, from what he could see Maya's physical enchantments allowed her to keep up with and at times even over power the shade, but the shade's body kept recovering from and punches and kicks Maya threw, though Maya could maybe only take one or two before her body would give out.

"I don't need your help!" Maya yelled angrily, the shade laughed as she charged Maya, throwing a wild punch that was grabbed and thrown, slamming the shade into a tree, as the tree began to crack from the force it fully broke as Maya leapt up and punched the shade hard, the audible snaps and cracks of the shade's ribs and the tree's trunk breaking filled the area. Followed by Maya's anguished yell as the Shade retaliated, crushing her arm. The Shade attempted to strike once more to finish the job but Bergan used the moment to distract the shade, he casted a brilliant ball of light, blinding her. He pulled Maya back with magic. "Damn you let me go!" She struggled against him, elbowing him in the face. In retaliation he squeezed her broken arm.

"Shut up!" He began to heal her arm. "Now look, when you attack the shade on the ground, you're greater fighting experience lets you overcome her strength and speed, but the ground is too muddy, you can't get enough traction to do lasting damage." He let go of her, pushing her out of the way as the Shade leapt down, hand covering one eye.

"That… hurt." She growled leaping towards him, he barely blocked her attack, with her hand occupied he kicked her in the stomach, then leaning in, he elbowed her in the face, he heard the audible crack as he broke her nose, only to see it reset itself as her hand cocked back to smash his face in, he blocked with his sword and arm, yelling as his arm gave out and sword snapped. He fought to keep conscious as he slammed into a tree. The shade charged at him, only for Maya to trip it from behind. "Stop getting in my way!" The shade brought both fists to the ground, causing a large depression as leaves and dirt sprayed all over.

"_Herdtha!" (harden) _Bergan clenched his good hand as he leaned against the tree, the spray of dirt began to gather together, it only covered the shade as a correct level of water left it, allowing it to cake all over her, and slowly turning it stone like. Even as it did the shade attempted to break out, unfortunately she had caked herself in a large amount of dirt and mud, even as she liberated her body from some of the mud, more found its way on her, soon a fine layer of hardened almost rock like mud covered her face and torso. _"Jierda un Thringa!" (Break and thrust)_. The shade's screams went a pitch higher as the caked dirt and stone broke and pressed down on her skin. Some of it even drawing blood. The shade began to approach him, hand curled _"Blautr" (soften), o_nly to fall half way into a sink hole. The dirt around her began to harden again, and the shade erupted out, so distracted she barely blocked Bergan's surprise thrust into her chest, the blade pierced her hand, but jerked to a stop at the tip of her chest.

"You…" The shade eyed him, "You're cute, that makes me…" She brought her face close, "…hungry…", she opened her mouth, saliva dripping from her excessive canines, she jerked forward and Bergan closed his eyes, prepared for the inevitable, only to open and find a look of shock on her face as her chest had met his sword hilt. Looking past her shocked face Bergan saw Maya, equipped with an angry scowl, bruised lip and black eye, but still spirited in the other eye as her foot pressed down harder, driving the shade's heart deeper up the blade past the hilt. The shade's eyes rolled over as she slumped apart, and Bergan dropped the sword, backing away quickly as she exploded. Not sparing time to his injuries he turned to the other shade, but he needn't be worried.

The other shade had been riding off his greater strength and speed, once the warriors switched the energy they had from defending wards to strength and speed enchantments the fight slowly became for even. The shade found to his surprise that despite still being stronger and faster, the tiny boost the soldiers received made them much more difficult to contend with. Every time it looked like he was about to overwhelm a soldier, two would step in to block and hold him back. Then a third would leap out of nowhere to attack him from the back, cutting a tendon. The lapse in concentration allowed the mages to go on the offensive, and whenever they did that, they would target wherever he was attacked. He had charged a mage in retaliation only to have two knights slip under his guard and in an elegant twisting motion nearly sever his hand from his arm, only to have the mage chant and have the wound explode in fire.

_The mage, that bitch… I must…_ Only one mage was keeping the soldiers protected, the others simply attacked him, he could handle their attacks if not for that mage allowing the soldiers to continue to harass him. He spotted her, far back. Grinning he went for a head long charge, soldiers threw chains on him, stabbed him, shot him with arrows, one even stabbed him with a Seithr oil coated dagger, even as all of these things occurred, he merely charged the mage, eventually two soldiers leapt in front of him, blades at ready. "Get out of my WAY!" He screamed, stabbing his blade with enough force to crush the first one and knock the second one back, but at a cost, both their blades stabbed into his chest, missing his heart but getting his lungs, he began to stagger towards the mage, spells and weapons flying at him still, she was still chanting, her mind nearly impenetrable. "Damn! I! I am! I am the shade Yolin!" he cried out as the soldiers began to strain, pulling on the chains to keep him from moving, if not for the wounds he had already received they would have been easy pickings, but even then, at least with his mental pressure none could approach, but then the mage picked up a fallen soldiers spear and began to walk towards him.

Merigold could feel her wards breaking down as she approached the Shade, she had gambled, with the Shade now concentrated on her she had begun removing her protective energy from the soldiers, who continued to fight now unprotected, utilizing their crystals for attack. The mages continued their strikes on the shade, unawares that a stray attack could accidentally kill their men. She believed in their training, in their ability to keep out of the affect radius of a magician's attacks, and she believed in the magician's ability to avoid hitting their allies, for the most part she was right, but she miscalculated the Shade's attempt at a headlong charge, even with the energy she wouldn't have been able to block it all and retaliate. Those two soldiers who used their bodies to defend her bought her enough time to slow the shade down. Just enough for the men to finally hold him down, yet none could approach the pressure he gave off, except for her now. She felt her wards continuing to drop, but she had plenty of energy, she carried the spear, aiming it towards the shade's chest, letting out a harsh battle cry she ran, ramming it into the Shade, who let out a gasp as the blade pierced his heart.

"D-damn… Tartarus promised us freedom to do what we would… he… he told us the world would be… ours… we…" His body broke apart, disintegrated as over 20 spirits exploded form his corpse screaming out into the day. Merigold kept herself from collapsing as she approached the soldiers, healing them from any wounds within her power, she went to Bergan last, using a mix of his reserves and crystal to heal him as best she could.

"Thanks…" Bergan began, "What are our casualties?"

"We started as 30, 12 mages, 18 soldiers, we are down to 22, we lost 6 soldiers and 2 mages, one mage is suffering from crystal backlash, so he's out for the rest of the mission, and two soldiers were seriously injured to the point that even after healing them I can't in good conscious let them go back in." Merigold clenched her fist, "I let too many die…"

"No… it's not your fault…" Bergan began, "We didn't know to expect shades, one had 10 spirits, the other, the one you defeated had 20! There was no way we would have known to expect that."

Maya walked over, clutching her shoulder, they had set and healed it for her, but it still ached. "So, what now, do we go in?"

"We can't leave 3 men out here, we need at least one mage and warrior out here to help them in case there's another attack, but the rest of us need to investigate this place, if we found a shade… those kids, they could be dead! I-I!"

"Bergan!" Maya smacked him slightly, "Don't go crazy on me…" She looked at him oddly, "You, you're a competent fighter, I trust you to get my back, we'll find those kids." She smiled, "And besides, we took out two shades, even if we used up a huge chunk of energy. I'm pretty sure we can take out another one with an element of surprise.

"Before you go…" A soldier speaks up, "He goes to the injured and dead soldiers and mages, and takes their crystals, "Every little bit will help. And these things are engraved with their names." He clenched his teeth. "Let's take out all the bastards in this literal hell hole." The mages nodded, taking the crystals and divvying the energy into equal parts. The soldiers nodded as well, cleaning their equipment, they left a marker and instructed the injured members to alert Celica and Rakus when they arrive. After that, the 18 or so men and women ran into the corridor, entering the complex…

"So…" Morgan whispered, "What do we do?" He turned to Seya.

"Why are you asking me?!" She hissed back.

"Because she's got white hair like you sometimes, and she keeps calling you-"

"Hey Omega!" Gamma interrupted, grinning, "You didn't say you were coming to visit! It's been years!"

"Just a minute!" Seya smiled placatingly at the girl before looking at her friends. "…look, I can't trust any of them, Bartholomew, you said it yourself, she would have killed you without hesitation."

Bartholomew was eating a pastry that he had to split with Gamma, when they had run into the group he had a good time talking to his allies about the necessity of teamwork and remembering where everyone was, though he deigned to let them know the only reason they were separated was due to the fact that he had run the instant he saw that mage, and thus hadn't caught up when they destroyed one of the hall ways.

"True," He said, "She did almost kill me, but she saved my life, and she seems to be weak to food." He patted Gamma on the head, "She seems… harmless enough." Gamma ignored their talking as she continued to stuff her face with pastries.

"Also…" Morgan continued, "We don't have any idea where Faris could be, and there's all the shades."

"Why're you guys worried about Shades? I've taken them out plenty of times, they're really easy, at least, the weak ones are easy."

"Weak ones?" Katya asked incredulously, she turned to Alanna and Dusan, the elven children were quite powerful, but even they hadn't been able to stand up to that Hruk, it had taken all of their teamwork, minus Bartholomew, to even injure that monster, and even then, they almost died.

"Yeah, for the weak ones it doesn't even matter if they begin taking hold of your mind, as long as your wards stop instant death just go for the heart, or suck them dry." She grinned impishly. "Why, did one of the weak ones give you trouble."

"It would be troublesome indeed if what we fought was one of the weak ones…" Venka muttered, the creature exuded more power than she did, with her crystal she could easily beat it, but it had taken hold so quickly she couldn't reach for her crystal. She yelped as Gamma got close to her.

"Wow… you're pretty strong for a human! It's like an elf! And wow!" She turned to Alanna and Dusan, "You guys really are elves!" Shaking her head, she cleared her throat, "Well anyway, I say a weaker one because Shades start off at different strengths. The less spirits go into a shade, and the smaller the spirits, the weaker the shade, for me, I'd say a weak shade would be anywhere from 1 to 5 spirits, any more and they'll be medium in power I guess, if it's a medium powered shade I'd have trouble, and I'd have to leave it to Alpha or Beta, or Delta when she's on a good day."

"The spirit we fought had 12 spirits." Seya said, interrupting her, "So there could be stronger shades?"

"Of course! Though 12? Wow, I'd have trouble taking that guy down, but any way, when shades are first born, they aren't really that good at using magic, it takes them a while to remember the magic they did know if the human was a magic user, and depending, their brains are all mashed up and gushy from everything. Sometimes the humans still fight, and the shade's a little weaker, normally that only happens if the shade is one or 2 spirits, and the human was really strong willed." She put her finger to her chin, green eyes sparkling, "I remember one time we had a lot of trouble, some idiot decided to try and stuff 50 spirits into a person, and we took it out, but Alpha and Beta almost died. Though we're lucky we killed it so soon."

"What do you mean?" Venka asked, worried now, "What would have happened if you didn't kill it?"

"Well, when a shade is born it's at its weakest, especially if the possessed guy or gal is still fighting. But the longer the shade lives, the stronger it becomes, it depends on how many spirits a shade has, and how long it's been alive, but even a shade with three spirits after living for 50 or so years could apparently almost meet the expectations of a shade with a dozen spirits in it. It's not just about strength though, smarter hosts make smarter shades, and whatever the person's skills were when they were alive kinda seeps into the shade." She turns to Seya, "That's what makes us special Omega, we're just like shades, but we can grow and learn and all that stuff much easier than a shade can, the doctor will be so happy to see you." She got up, "Anyways I think we're out of time here." The door burst open revealing a shade. Gamma frowned, "AWW MANNNN!" she groaned "Twenty-Five Spirits?!"

The state mages poured down the hall way, they found very little in the way of resistance, the few cultists they had surrendered easily, and often they'd run into gruesome sights, bodies split apart, burned, crushed.

"Shades' doing no doubt." A soldier spat. "They must have been doing some crazy things, those cultists, summoning spirits and creating shades?" The group moved to the bodies, any time they found a salvageable crystal they would take it and drain its energy. Belinda, one of the mages in Merigold's squad was able to identify a few of the enchantments on some tools, and the group took what was useful. After another 30 minutes they decided to rest, take stock of their provisions, and see if Celica and Rakus had arrived on point.

"We have gathered, maybe half of what we lost on that fight with the Shades, but with our reduced numbers the net loss per individual still capable of fighting is not as damning as it would have seemed. Splitting it all evenly I'd say we are all just slightly over 91% capacity." Bergan quickly calculated the energy divvying up and was pleased that everyone's moral went up from hearing that and seeing for themselves the improved stores. He took out a magic mirror, chanting some words in the ancient language he pictured an image of Rakus, and a separate one of Celica, they appeared, split screen to him, but from their background they were in similar areas. He saw though alarmed that they both looked a little worse for wear. "What happened to you two? To your squads?!"

"Same as you from what I gathered from your men, the injured ones are being escorted by a few, we were about to contact you all but you called first." She spits out a tooth. "Damn shades…"

"How many did your group encounter?" Bergan had once seen Celica tear a Shade from limb to limb and wasn't worried about her chances.

"There were five of them, annoying bastards, they attacked each other half as much as they attacked us. All of them raving about this Tartarus fellow."

"The shades we dispatched also mentioned a being by that name. Perhaps it could be a high-ranking sorcerer working in the cult…"

"Or a more powerful Shade, if any of these snuck into the city…" Bergan winced at the thought.

"More importantly!" Rakus interrupted, "Where's my grandson?!"

"Oh? Sir, well we haven't quite found him ye-"

"Your excuses matter not! I've been scrying him for the past few minutes! He seems frazzled though unhurt with his friends! But he's speaking to a stranger as well! I cannot see them, or his location! Be sure to find him!" Spittle flew from Rakus's mouth. "Make sure he's been eating well! And hand him a comb for god's sake! His hair looked ridiculous!"

Bergan smiled apologetically, "Of course sir, we will do our best to find him." He turned to Maya and Merigold, "So far we haven't encountered any more Shades, we believe perhaps they may have all been dealt with." No sooner had he said those words when a loud ringing boom echoed from down a hall to their left. "Speak of the shade." He turned to his fellows, "Come on then!" They ran down the hall way, the sound of battle and shouts mixing with their footsteps…

"If you're so great and all Gamma! Why don't you take this thing out right now!" Bartholomew yelped as his mud golem finally collapsed, he took out another tiny crystal, throwing it unto the pile of slag that used to be his golem, it slowly surged upwards like an active volcano before taking the loose form of a humanoid. It began to slither back into the fray of battle, and what a battle it was. The shade handled the group with an ease that could only be likened to a seasoned fighter facing against newborns, he seemed bored as he toyed with them, the only ones he seemed to put any real effort into fighting were Gamma, Seya, Venka, and the elves.

"I already told you! Twenty-five spirits! I can't handle that by myself! I'd need at least two people!" Gamma had attempted several times now to stab the vines she'd place energy in into the shade, only to have the vines be unable to overpower his wards, and any vines that got close were burned. Eventually she had stopped using the vines offensively, instead vying to levitate and propel stones and discarded weapons and even corpses along the way as they ran from the shade, continuing to fight a retreating battle, if not for her expertise they would have met a dead end and would have been crushed already, even then for two paths rocks had fallen and it had required quick thinking on Venka's part to blow a path for them.

"This monster! Who would allow such abominations to continue to exist!?" Alanna cried out as her blade barely fended off the shade's fist, he had noticed how Nya had utilized her magic, and had emulated it, hardening his body. She and Dusan, paired with Seya, were the forefront of physical confrontation. With Nya and Venka jumping in when one of those three were knocked back or injured. Katya ran backup, healing anyone who was too injured, and stepping in to block an especially vicious attack with her wards.

"Monster? That's hurtful, I have feelings you know." The shade smiles as he rushes up to Alanna, fist exposed, "I am Atlas" he had by now no longer got surprised when his fist felt like it struck an angled wall and bounced away from its target. "For mortals, you are all quite powerful."

"Mortal?" Gamma retorted, "I'm a greater being than you ever could be Shade!" Angered, she shot a huge chunk of energy into the walls, vines and roots erupted out, followed by a large amount of earth to cover it, the debris formed together, spiraling into a spear like sheath for the vines and roots to congregate inside. She launched her spear into the shade, who simply cocked his fist back to blast it away.

"_Malthinae"_ (hold down!) Bartholomew called out, the shade's eyes widened as the annoying thing of mud and dirt and rock erupted from below his feet for the third time, wrapping around and attempting to bind him. He would have broken it easily if not for the blond child who had placed a crystal on it.

"_Herdtha un verda drjugr!" (harden and become strong!)_ Morgan backed up quickly, fearing for his life as the shade's fist barely missed his neck and bounced away through Katya's quick ward.

The hardened earth acted as tethers, keeping the shade from moving its arms or legs as the spear came close to it. The dirt of the golem and the spear began to burn as it approached the shade's wards, and the spear began jerking to a halt, Venka began pushing the spear forward with her magic, the shade began to bleed in one eye and a vein on its temple pulsed as it fought back the two powerful magicians. Alanna and Dusan charged it from behind, swords flying through the air, their target was the shade's heart. The shade screamed out, his power radiating out as a dark flame, Alanna and Dusan backed up quickly as the flames burned away the dirt and mud golem. The spear cracked and broke apart, the vines dead and lifeless as they faced the heat.

"Amazing…" The Shade said as he lifted his hands, bringing everyone towards him, "Tartarus had told me I should not underestimate you puny beings, especially the white-haired ones. I've even learned a new trick."

The children screamed in pain as the shade's oppressive mind bore down on them, if not for Seya, Gamma, and the elves, the others would have succumbed to the Shade's mind. Even then they were losing, even worse than when they had fought against Hruk. Venka shouted angrily, eyes glowing bright red as she began using a massive amount of magic to bolster her mind. The shade's smile faltered slightly as the tide began to turn, then he cocked his hand back, stabbing towards Venka. Venka gasped as he utilized the ward piercing techniques, they had used on him to stab her.

"VENKA!" her friends screamed shrilly, doubling their efforts. Seya's hair turned fully white as she kicked at the shade's hand, breaking it instantly, the shade's hand snapped back in place and he removed it, licking the blood.

"First the liver, then the lungs, then the heart…" He cocked his hand back again, only to stagger as an arrow went through his chest from behind. He barely had time to react as another one hurtled towards his chest, with how easily the first one had cut into him he ducked, he was still even then too slow as the arrow pierced his skull. His screams were cut off as he exploded into shadows, but no spirits broke apart, one giant amalgamated chunk instead fled the hallways, going past the group that attacked him.

The kids did not care, they were gathered around Venka, who was coughing badly and bleeding quickly.

"Come on! Godsdammit!" Katya screamed, tears in her eyes as she began to slow the bleeding, attacks from shades healed slowly, magically or not, as a bit of their corrupt energy seeped into the wound. Even Seya and Gamma's wounds from the shade healed a bit slower than normal. Soon the mages ran up to them, a woman pushing through the kids and sitting across from Katya.

"Calm down child!" Merigold said, cross, "Remember! Once you lose your composure as a mage, you're useless out on the field!" She began chanting magic, she connected her mind to the girl. _Child, may you combine minds with mine for but a moment, only enough that I may use some of your energies to help you heal._ Merigold received her answer in the form of a draught of energy flowing in like a broken dam, using it she quickly began to isolate and drive out the corrupted energy of the shade, Venka's face, twisted in pain, began to soften as relief filled her. "She will be fine." Merigold wiped sweat off her brow. "Any blow to a vital area is serious, but a blow like that is especially dangerous with a Shade's magic." She looked at the students, angry, "You could have all gotten killed! How could you be so stupid!?"

"We, we needed to save Faris!" Nya shouted defensively, "He'd been jailed for over a month! Then taken!"

"We wouldn't have that if he hadn't been foolish! Rembrant was faulty in his actions but he had the legal precedent to arrest your friend!" Maya spoke up crossly, "And he should have been prepared for punishment and retaliation for what he did!"

"You…." Venka struggled to get up.

"I wouldn't bother, I've put a strong sleeping agent into you, into all of you," Merigold began, "First we're going to take you out of here, then we're going back in with back up from Celica and Rakus to see if we can find your friend and rout out any remaining enemy."

The kids found to their alarm that a level of lethargy began to take hold of them, the only ones unaffected in any way were the elves, and Venka and Gamma.

"Kids," Bergan sighed, "Why did you have to go and do this? Not only are you risking your lives but you even dragged our elven ambassadors into this mess?! The kingdom of elves would rail against us if the children die."

"For your information sir we chose to leave on our own volition." Dusan put his foot down, his face betraying a bit of exasperation. "Faris is near and dear to our heart, to leave him abandoned for so long…"

"And the crime he committed, perhaps human laws are different, but to the elves, children are extremely sacred, anyone harming a child, whether human, elf, or animal, would be met with appropriate punishment, sometimes even as harsh as death, the men Faris killed, did they not harm hundreds of children?" Alanna's pure eyes made the mages and warriors turn away, suddenly ashamed of themselves. "Perhaps he was too quick to slay them and cast judgement, but he himself was a child, and perhaps like the rest of my friends, he saw a bit of himself in each child that's life was cut short due to the evils of the men he killed. The true crime was leaving him in that cell for so long."

"I do not come into your kingdom and tell you how to govern your people," Maya began obstinately, "Don't you dare-!"

"Maya!" Bergan interrupted, "Now is not the time! We have little time as it is, that Shade was not killed, he took the blow to the skull instead of the chest, and with his power he will likely reform quickly. Dallying and arguing won't get us anywhere. And like it or not, you know this entire debacle was a sham in the first place."

"A… sham?" Venka winced out, even though she was healed there still lay a bit of a phantom pain, and that did not even include the light-headedness and sluggishness born form the blood loss and enchantment from Merigold.

"Yeah…" Seya said bitterly, "Regardless of whether or not they found Faris to be in the right or wrong, once the real trial occurred all he would have needed to do was speak the truth of the events in the ancient language, the trial would be a jury comprised of 50% aristocrats and 50% normal citizens. Most citizens hate magic but you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone so blind-sighted as to sentence a boy to death for avenging children from criminals. The reason Faris was still in jail was because of all the red tape being put up bureaucratically, technically he could have been released on a form of parole or house arrest but many pro mages wanted to believe he could be made a martyr against the anti-mage group amongst the aristocrats. I can't do anything other than swing my blade and let loose my magic at my father's behest, so my words and placating would have done nothing…"

"But…" Morgan began, struggling angrily, "That's… inhumane, it's, but…" He collapsed on the floor, barely conscious, Nya followed suit, followed by Venka, followed by Katya. Alanna and Dusan lowered their weapons, but they're faces had lost their expression, they hid whatever emotions they were feeling down a passive mask.

"I can understand the merits of the plan, it works, but… huh…" Bartholomew collapsed, "When it happens to someone I know and at least relatively appreciate… it… tastes sour…"

Bergan had a look of sorrow and rage on his face as he lifted the kids up with magic, he turned to the others, "Come on elves, Seya, erm…"

Gamma smiled, "See I can't exactly let you leave. You're intruders."

Maya laughed, "There's just one of you child"

"Actually, make that two." Seya stood with her, eyes glowing gold, "I came in here with my friends to find and rescue Faris, we are going to find and rescue Faris."

Maya's face turned dark, "You're making a mistake child, when we get back, the shame you bring for defying our orders and endangering the elves will undoubtedly bring shame to the mages and to your father."

"Actually, you aren't going anywhere," a voice called from the gloom. Stepping out of the dark was a man with straight brown hair and a soft looking face twisted into a grimace-like smile. He was surrounded by several guards and cultists, and 6 children with white hair like Gamma's, everyone in his group had some form of dirt and grime and blood on them. He wore spectacles, but one of them was cracked, this mixed with his odd facial expression and nearly ruined coat would give anyone the impression of 'mad scientist.' He looked at the group around him then turned to Gamma, who flinched under his gaze. "Gamma, I can't say I'm surprised you didn't report all our guests." His scathing brown eyes flitted from one person to another, his gazes lingered on Bergan's and the two Triples. "My goodness council members and council hopefuls? To what could I expect such an-!" He stopped as he looked at Seya, resisting the urge to rub his eyes he smiled hungrily. "…Omega, I see you have returned home, this is a momentous occasion, it almost fixes everything else that occurred today." He turned around, "All of you, come, a great moment is upon us."

Maya stepped forward, "By authority of the Broddring Kingdom, you and all of your members are under arrest for suspicion of illegal magical experimentation, child exploitation and kidnapping, illegal magic use, sorcery, and the summoning of multiple shades." She cracked her knuckles, "I'd heavily suggest that you surrender."

"Beta…" The girl with red eyes spoke quietly, her eyes looked calm, a look that caused Gamma to sweat. The tallest youth, a muscular teen with short white hair stepped forward.

"I'd politely ask that you all surrender, right now I do not have the wherewithal to go easy on you, especially due to the level of skill you seem to display." He raised his fists, a deadly calm on his face. Maya answered by charging him, ground cracking beneath her, sword raised she swung to chop his arm off without hesitation. To her surprise he seemed to disappear from her view. A split second later she felt a sharp pain on her lower back as she hurtled towards the wall, colliding with it hard enough to lose conciousness.

Bergan charged at the boy, only to be pushed back by the only other white-haired boy, a youth even younger looking that Faris, he launched levitating blades and conjured fireballs at Bergan, who felt his wards begin to lessen quickly. He prepared a retaliation only to find himself unable to move. To his alarm all his allies were unable to move as the girl with violet eyes lifted her hand.

"Please surrender." She said quietly, "I do not wish to see any more split blood."

"Excellent point Delta." The man with the broken spectacles spoke again, "I grow tired of having to deal with shades on such an alarming basis, of course, it would normally be a thrilling venture had they not been enchanted to have the spirits disappear almost instantly!" He growled in anger. "That damnable whelp…"

"Where's Faris?!" Bergan demanded; the man laughed.

"Wouldn't you like to know…"


	56. Chapter 56

Sam's call filled the guard tower, Captain Mint took out his spear, activating his crystal he sent an order to his solders to squad up, switch to defense, and defend the kingdom. "Initiate evacuation orders! Now!" He charged outside, heart twisting as he saw three sprawled figures, one of them being Sam, face twisted in agony, half his body melted slag and blood and bile still pooling out. After a few words of prayer, the captain ran to the edge of the wall, joining his soldiers in the middle of a melee with cloaked figures. Shouts and screams and blood filled the air as men and women fought, died, and killed. He rushed a cultist, cutting him down with a quick strike from his enchanted spear. As the man crumpled before him, he roared at the top of his lungs. "GATHER TOGETHER MEN! AUXILARY SQUAD! WHAT'S THE STATUS OF THE EVACUTION PROCEDURES?!"

A solder ran up to him, the man who had been teasing Sam, giving a grim salute he answered. "Our auxiliary forces have already initiated the lockdowns and evacuations, all homes not designated as defendable positions have been locked down and warded with their magic stones, with the connection to the main source cut off. The citizens are being herded back."

"Where's our other forces?"

"On their way sir, but I received message that the elite squad is heading towards the main castle to defend the queen and nobles staying their in regards to the trial."

Captain Mint paled. "Damn! Are they aiming for the nobility!?" He grits his teeth. "Have any slipped past our forces?!"

"At least a hundred sir, we don't know the casualties yet…"

Horma gathered his former gang members. "Together now! Give them enough time to escape!" He winced as another member was cut down by the invaders.

"Dammit Horma! We're being slaughtered out here! What are we supposed to do!" One of the gangsters, an ugly fellow with a bad eye screamed.

"Your son is behind us Faz! And my daughter is behind me! We aren't worth anything if we can't buy them enough time!" He was joined by a soldier, off duty who had just had enough time to put on a breast plate and helmet before getting into battle. He had keys to an old garrison and could arm the former thugs, and together they fought the losing battle to buy enough time for the people of the slums to make it to safety.

"If we make it out here, you all should think about joining the guards!" The soldier laughed, stabbing a cultist about to decapitate a stumbling thug.

Horma's lungs burned as his attacks began to slow. "We have to keep fighting! We ha-"

He was interrupted as the world exploded around him and as several of his men fell down. A cultist with deep green eyes and black hair smirked at them. She was beautiful, save for the massive burn on her cheek and left shoulder. "This damn city will burn for Jahat and the Scarlett Heart! REVENGE FOR GALBATORIX!" Her men roared in agreement as she charged the soldier, who's chest plate's crystal had saved his life but left him weak, they fought for a few seconds before she cut him down and sent her men forward. As they charged, Horma stumbled to his feet, regrouping with a few barely alive men and women.

"We… we can't let you past…" The woman smiled, but before she could utter anything in the ancient language a stone smashed her in the forehead. Horma turned, shocked to see Dustin, the son of Martha, the last score they were going after before they met that boy. Horma grit his teeth. "Run boy! She'll kill you! Get to safety!"

Dustin shook his head. "I have to help people!"

"Dammit boy!" Horma stumbled towards the enemy, but before he could get to them an arrow pierced him in the neck. The last thing he saw before he collapsed was the famous old blacksmith wheeling a contraption, Uglauw's wife and Martha assisting him as he aimed it at the Scarlett Heart Cultists.

"Hahaha!" Meior laughed, "This city's full of surprises, first children now thugs, then children, two housewives, and an old man stand in my way?!" She kicked Horma's corpse and charged forward.

Gurant to his credit merely lit the match, watching as it rapidly drained, entering the chamber of the cannon. He had equipped Dustin, himself, and the two women with wax ear plugs, but even that didn't fully protect them from the sheer noise as the cannon fired.

Meior's face made an "Oh…" expression as the stone ball tore her in half and crashed into the cultists, seconds after it hit them an explosion rung out, engulfing the group of cultists.

Yura rushed towards Horma. As she sat by his side, he opened his eyes. Trying to speak, but the arrow blocked his wind pipe and was rapidly filling his lungs with blood. Interpreting his look, Yura smiled. "Tania is safe, she and your wife made it to the shelter, the men and guards there are safe, and the shelter has been protected. You saved them Horma." Martha by this point approached them.

Horma smiled, tears streaming down his eyes, with great effort, he squeezed out, "I'm… so…sorry…"

They were interrupted by another figure. Before they could utter another word the world again shook as the cannon fired a second round, the figure was engulfed in smoke. Gurant smiled, but his face twisted in shock as the smoke cleared, revealing a figure missing one arm, the heat had burned its clothes, revealing a red haired, red eyed man.

The shade grinned as it extended its arms, grabbing the woman with magic and levitating them.

"Let my mom go!" Dustin screamed, before he could take a step he began to grab at his neck, choking as the shade blocked his air.

Gurant calibrated his cannon, but before he could load it, the shade uttered, "Jierda." The cannon broke to pieces.

The shade's smile faltered as three spirits, glowing bright blue, surrounded it, the air filled with the smell of honey as an explosion wrung out. The magic holding the women and choking Dustin ended, but before Martha and Yura fell to their deaths magic wrapped around them, ethereal vines gently lowering them to the ground. Standing before Gurant was Farooq.

"You are the old blacksmith?" Farooq eyed the broken contraption, "Ahh… a pity." He turned to the vines. "Hey! Jaya! How should we take care of this!"

The vines wrapped around each other, exploding into flames before revealing Lord Jaya's form, his eyes still gleamed in a fiery red before returning to their normal blue coloration. "Of course." He smiled at the shade.

The shade returned an equivalent smile. "Your sorcerer." He glanced at Farooq, "He stole my magic…"

Jaya smiled, "Of course he did, I wouldn't fight Jahat's most powerful shade while they were at full power." The shade charged into the air, his fist piercing through Jaya's chest, as blood spilled everywhere the drops set on fire, wrapping around the shade and burning its body, as it did so, the flames turned into spikes, cutting the monster to ribbons.

"WHAT!" The shade roared.

**"****Your mistake was believing you could do as you wanted within this city, we of the thirteen carry the city on our backs."** Jaya's voice echoed.

The shade struggled as its body kept being destroyed, then collapsed into a heaping mess. In an instant a spike of earth rushed up piercing through it, as it did, the shade's body began to reform. Behind the shade, a gigantic golem materialized, if fell apart as the spike jutted out. The shade collapsed, but slowly got up. "Hahaha… it's an illusion. But it feels reel."

Jaya smiled, "Yes, yes it does, enough that most die simply from the shock, how humorous…" He turned to Farooq, "This will be a fight indeed…"

"By Guntera above…" Vulcan swore a few dwarven oaths as he brandished his hammer. _Volund! How are you holding?_

_I'll tear them apart! Raaargh!_ Volund flew through the air, trying to tear at the half dozen fanghur that attacked him. They were more agile than he was, but he held the advantage of speed. _These mocking false dragons dare take the skies and challenge me?!_ They screeched at Volund who met back with a savage roar.

Vulcan grit his teeth. "Now, it's my turn to handle you lot." Before him stood six figures. Unfurling their hoods to reveal the final 6 members of the black hand.

"Our final orders had been to slay Nasuada." Their leader, a handsome man with shoulder length blond hair spoke, "Murtagh had convinced our king to extend mercy, and in his grace, he did." His face twisted, "But you dashed it away, and your disgusting fledgling rider killed him." Trianna stood in front of Nasuada, staff glowing a bright violet color. At her side stood 10 original members of Du Vrangr Gata. The man laughed, "Ah, the Du Vrangr Gata, why not one of our traitors? Do you seriously believe the ones Galbatorix didn't think were even worth keeping tabs on could defend you now? How many of your number have been felled by my blade or spell?"

"Why don't we find out?" Trianna yelled. "You've only fought us outside of the city! **We of the Du Vrangr Gata carry the city!"** Blades and words slung through the air as the groups clashed.


	57. Chapter 57

Bergan roared with effort as he swung his gisarme, cutting off the shade's head. Before the body burst into smoke Angela stabbed forward Tinkledeath, piercing the shade's chest. They all backed up and away from the shade, watching as its body blew up.

"This… monster, why are they here?!" He winced as Haya put a hand to his shoulder wound, healing him slowly.

"Galbatorix experimented on shade creations." Haya said, "Two of my previous partners ended up being fodder for his experiments after failing tasks." She winced as the spirits rushed out. "Was this all of them?"

Elva shakes her head. "She's coming."

Haya began to channel the raw power within the crystal Jaya gave her, preparing layer upon layer of ward around herself and her allies.

Entering the room, was a child with scarlet eyes and hair. Solembum's fur bristled, and he backed up slightly. Angela gripped her sword with greater force. "This… this isn't Jahat, is it?"

Elva shook her head, "Once she says her third word run."

The shade girl regarded the group with wide eyes, smiling she spoke. "Oh, hello there." The floor beneath them burst into flames, nearly breaking the wards protecting the city's power source. The few dozen mages and volunteers donating their power for that particular hour backed against the wall. Panic in their voices as they saw the second shade. The plum of smoke cleared rapidly as an iron ball struck the shade, knocking her back dozens of feet. Bergan gripped the hand cannon Faris had used, arms trembling.

"How… did my son utilize this without his arms ripping off?" Bergan groaned, muscles trembling and chest heaving.

"Magic, like all other aspects of our world we can't explain." Elva twirled her dagger. "Angela, move three paces forward as quickly as you can and charge forward, Solembum, take as far a path as you can via the left. Don't tackle her, rather…" She pointed to the large Erisdar at the top. "Cut that rope."

"What should I do?" Bergan asked.

"Keep aiming, Haya, refuel and reignite, Gurant gave us the procedure." Elva took out a green glowing dagger. "There's more, but you can't hear it until it happens." She swallowed uncomfortably. "Follow my lead."

The walls of the city were torn apart, erupting in flame. The shade blew the buildings that rushed towards him, scowling as he had to leap out of the way from the attacks. **"I'm getting tired of your illusions." **He scowled in anger. He chanted in the ancient language to pierce the illusion surrounding him, just in time to dodge the flying blade, he wasn't able to fully dodge it as it speared his shoulder.

Farooq uttered some commands to the spirit controlling the blade, it charged forward, glowing in its wild magic.

The shade growled, unable to interfere with the magic behind the spirits.

"Even as you seek to destroy us, your magic is born from the spirits inside of you, more that destruction of flesh, they seek freedom." Farooq smirked, "So in its own way, your body is fighting against you."

Jaya swung his staff. Now the shade was within the depths of the sea, it found breathing impossible, it's mind slowly fading.

"Jierda!" The shade screamed, the sea broke apart, crackling like shards of glass. But before it could move forward a bag landed on its face, blowing up and hurtling it towards the ground. From the earth erupted a massive black dragon, closing its fangs on the shade. The shade blocked the teeth with its arms and legs, but it was the tongue that was the true danger, somehow piercing it in the heart. The shade began to scream in rage and horror as the illusion faded away, revealing Jaya with a sword, smirking as he pushed the dying shade into the pit it created.

"_Un atra mor'ranr lifa unin hjarta onr." _He uttered, turning away.

The last remaining black hand member's eyes flashed with fear, greater than the danger the rider posed, the Du Vrangr Gata seemed to be the true dangers. While Vulcan had dispatched of two of his hand, and the dwarves' dragon Volund had made short work of the fanghur they took control of, but the Du Vrangr Gata were by far the most dangerous.

"You weren't this powerful merely 3 months ago! If not for Vanir we would have killed you!"

Trianna simply replied, "We were outside of the city."

The black hand mage widened his eyes. He began to laugh. "So… that's why they had us diverge our forces. Jahat in her mercy gave us this opportunity knowing we would likely fail, in order to buy time for her weapon." He laughed, taking out a second blade and smirking, eyes flickering red. "GLORY TO JAHAT!" He charged forward, fighting with renewed vigor. Even as blades pierced him and his mind was on the backfoot, he fought like a wild beast, finally cutting down one of the members of the Du Vrangr Gata, he sighed as a blade stabbed through his spine. Dropping his weapon, he looked outside, smiling.

Trianna followed his gaze, eyes widening as she saw the station that held the city's massive energy source, there was a whole in the complex, and smoke wafting from it.

"It's too late it seems…" The mage smiles, kissing Trianna's hand. "A kiss to bid you goodbye." He began to chant rapidly in the ancient language, arms tightening around Trianna's arm like a vice. The combined efforts of the Du Vrangr Gata and Volund weren't able to remove the man from the embrace. Their words did nothing either, he had already died. Eventually his body crumbled to dust, an energy seeming to enter Trianna's body. Trianna began to feel her strength rapidly leave her as her body also began to glow.

"No!" She screamed.

_"__Vëoht"_ Volund said, the air around the glowing cult member seemed to thicken. "I've bought us a few minutes. Trianna, it's your call, what must we do?" The sorceress looked at the dwarf, then at the cultist, then at Nasuada.

"We will find a way to separate you two. We can do it, I'll recall one of the thirteen, Farooq! He can-" Trianna shook her head, smiling she stared at Vulcan.

"Take me to the air."

"Trianna!" Nasuada called out harshly, "I am giving you an order! Stay put now!"

"Nasuada, I will respectfully reply that your idea is stupid and will lead to all our deaths, we don't have enough time for a miracle caused by spirits." She shook her head, "I didn't imagine I would become one of the most powerful mages in all of Alagaesia." She smiled, "It was fun whilst it lasted."

She walked up to Vulcan, who helped her up to Volund's back. Together Dragon, Rider, and Sorceress took to the skies, getting as far away as possible from the castle and from the city.

"When will the spell end?" She simply asked.

Vulcan swore under his breath. "In 1 minute and 30 seconds." They were 30 miles away from the city and nearly 20 miles away from the air.

"Pity, I would have liked to ask you how Eragon was doing." She smiled. "I thought he was adorable, he was stronger than those insufferable twins, sharp, and quite handsome. And he was a rider!" She glowed as she said those words. "A powerful man who would shape the future of Alagaesia, and I thought I could maybe stand at his side." She giggled, "Of course, his dragon hated me. Maybe she saw what was within my heart."

Vulcan chuckled nervously. "I'm sorry, she was actually jealous of the potential attention being taken away."

Trianna laughed as well, "I could have been tied to the most powerful man in Alagaesia, but somehow, because a dragon envied me? How ironic." She sighed. "When riders returned, I had illusions of one choosing me, but I was too scared to try. I didn't think one would ever find me worthy." She smiled sadly. "This is the first dragon I've ever ridden," She looked down, "This is the first time I've seen my city in it's entirety." Tears streamed down her face. "It's so beautiful." She took out her staff and her ring, handing them to Vulcan. "You can stop here." As Vulcan takes the items Trianna stares into a hard spot of space, in an instant she was engulfed in violet light, her body disappearing in the explosion and reappearing leagues away in the air. Volund roared in rage as he flew back towards the kingdom.

_The oath breaker's claws are deep that he still reaches out now to take vengeance on us._

"This isn't vengeance, this is disgusting." Vulcan turned to his Eldunari. _Was there nothing that could be done?_

_…__We can't reverse the process, we can only slow it, perhaps using the energy of the city she could live another decade, but by the week's end she would have lacked the capacity to think._ The dragon hummed sadly. _She was a brave woman._ The sky flashed white for an instant. When Vulcan turned around, he saw a smoke cloud. _Prepare!_ The Eldunari shouts. _It releases a radius of light, heat, and poison that could reach even us!_

_All the more to fuel my anger…_ Volund rumbled.

As they flew rapidly towards the kingdom Vulcan couldn't help but think of the boy, who was captured by the same monsters who attacked the capital.

Venka opened her eyes, head pounding she looked around, she was in chains and fastened to a wall, her robe and items gone and replaced with a simple smock. She looked around in panic, the thin fabric felt alien, and she felt scared that someone had gotten close enough to replace her clothing. She looked left and right to see her friends were in similar positions, though larger and thicker looking chains held down Alanna, Dusan, and Seya.

"Ah… you're awake? You really are more impressive than I imagined." She looked to see Dr. Mendel, his eyes no longer held the pleasant light they once wore, now dark bags surrounded them, his eyes themselves had a slightly glazed and unfocused expression, but they zeroed in on Venka looking her up and down, before turning to each of the other kids. Venka squirmed, bruising her wrists as she struggled to do anything to get away from the man, she settled with pressing her back to the wall, in an attempt to meld into it.

"Get away from me! I'm warning you!" The man ignored her, coming closer, "Brisingr!" She screamed. Yet nothing happened.

"Surprised?" Dr. Mendel came closer, "That I'm not burning into ash?" He smiled, caressing her cheek. Venka turned away from his touch. "You are marvelous you know? Alpha is an exemplary specimen, as powerful as or even more powerful than the shade Gamma reported you all fought together. Beta is not far behind her in strength, and whilst the others aren't as impressive, they are all at around the levels of skilled elves. I had thought I had made a miracle with Omega's readings." He looked at Seya tenderly, like looking at an old friend, or lost lover, "She was a sickly child when I first met her, but she had astounding magical ability for a human, greater than most I had met. Though still less than any elf. And looking at her now, my experiment truly paid off, she's so powerful, if she hadn't exhausted herself and had been under my care, she would be leaps and bounds ahead of Alpha, a pity that Alpha is now slightly her senior in power." He chuckled, turning to Alanna and Dusan. "Those elves, elven children, they really are filled to the brim with a special magic, now that they are resting even the chains are having trouble keeping their magic on check. But you…" He turned to Venka; his eyes hungry. "You are just a human girl, yet Delta's fluctuations have never yielded a result comparable to what you have stored within you…" He took out a needle, eliciting struggling again. "Shhh, shhh, I only need a little blood, you don't want the needle breaking in you, do you?"

Venka stilled as the needle entered an artery, eyes widening as she felt a pinching, sour pain in her wrist, Mendel wiped the area and applied a quick healing gauze. "Where's Faris…" She growled at him.

"Oh? You want to know were Epsilon is? He's dead."

"I don't believe you.'

"Trust me," He laughed, "You should." He sighed, "That fool, he chose to sacrifice his life as opposed to lose his freedom to me, but lost both. But you!" He turned to look at Venka excitedly, hand touching her face again. "I'll make you even greater, even Jahat would be impressed with your pow-" He screamed as Venka bit down on his finger, dropping the needled his other hand clenched into a fist, punching Venka hard, causing her head to crack painfully against the wall and getting her to let go. He clutched his pained hand, throbbing from the force of the bite, he turned to glare at Venka, teeth clenched,

Venka spit at his direction, "Your hand is dirty and disgusting, nothing you make would ever be great." Mendel did not respond at first, finally, instead of simply retorting, he clenched his fist, choosing instead to punch Venka repeatedly, emphasizing each blow with a word.

"Don't! You! Dare! Lecture! Me! Child!"

"Stop it!" Dr. Mendel turned to see Seya had awakened, "Leave her alone! Isn't it me you want!? Let them go!"

"Ah… Omega." Dr. Mendel, almost immediately forgetting about his rage walked over to Seya. "It is truly lovely to see you again. I can comply with your first request, seeing you again has put me in a good mood. But I can't let them go, I think it's time to increase the family." He chuckled, "I wonder how powerful the elves will be…" He turned, stepping on the blood sample and twisting it left and right. "I wanted to see the content of the blood to make sure I had a correct mixing of the formula, but special treatment isn't warranted I gather."

Seya waited until she couldn't hear his footsteps before turning to Venka. "Are you alright? Did he… do anything to you."

"He drew my blood, and gave me these new bruises, so all he did was increase the ass-kicking I'll serve him when we break free."

Seya smiled at Venka's enthusiasm, but kept to herself the direness of their situation. Even if they broke out, they'd be in no shape to defend against the other enhanced children. The cuffs blocked magic, and the room blocked outside magic, so it was likely that they wouldn't be able to contact anyone via scrying or magic mirror, even if they broke out. Mumbling alerted her, and she and Venka turned to see who was beginning to get roused. It was Dusan.

The young elf's arms were sore, he turned and observed his surroundings. "Seya, Venka, you two are awake as well… Venka, are you alright? You look hurt…" Venka nodded. "Did the mad doctor capture us?"

"He did…" Seya muttered, leaning her head against the wall, it was the only comfort she could find. She closed her eyes, breathing in and out as calmly as possible.

Soon after the others began to wake.

"Where's Faris? Where's Bergan and the others?"

"I don't know," Venka sighed despondently.

"We can't just give up." Nya said angrily. She began to pull against her chains, hands turning white from the strain.

Seya looked at her friends. "You're right… we can't."

The door blew open, revealing Dr. Mendel, covered in scuff marks ran in, clutching a dagger, he looked wild eyed at the children, and sprinted towards Venka.

"Dammit! I won't let him! If he turns you then they may threaten Jahat!" Venka looked in fear at the desperation on Dr. Mendel's face. Another loud boom shook the area, and Beta burst in.

"Doctor we have approximately 2 seconds." Before Dr. Mendel could say anything, Beta blew up a wall, the earth and dirt levitated above the ceiling for a short bit, allowing the two to sprint through before it reformed almost perfectly. This was followed by two screams, followed by the sound of a shade dying as the spirits were ripped from the body. The kids knew the sound well enough from Hruk. Light footsteps echoed as the noise of the explosion settled, the door swung open again. Dust and smoke settling. A figure, the outline of a child, walked into the room, movement casual. The dust began to clear, revealing red hair, and glowing red eyes. The kids looked on in dread, then shock.

The first person to break the silence was Venka, who's eyes grew wide as she burst into a shrieking sob, her tears hit the floor, soaking in as the figure approached.

Morgan was the first person to speak, "F-Faris? Is that you…"

The shade cocked his head, "Was that this body's name?" He smiled, charging towards Venka, hand brimming with magic, "My name now is Tartarus…"


	58. Chapter 58

When Dr. Mendel revealed he had experimented on the children, and that the failures had been returned to the men to be disposed of, Faris's mind began to slip into rage and despair as he began to flit through the memories of the men he killed, stopping on each child who was brutalized then murdered.

_You mean they died… because of this? This ridiculous nonsense? Godhood?!_

Damien, deep within Faris's mind tried to calm the boy, but his rage was growing too much for the child to handle coherently. That was why Anya revealed herself after an age of silence. And that was why she entreated the spirit.

_The fifteen spirits summoned immediately understood what happened when the shade they became died, they had heard stories of mortals who hunted shades, and collected the spirits within, they struggled to escape, but to no avail. Suddenly a voice called out to them, a human woman, entreating sanctuary if they would but cooperate. They all ignored her, no use trusting a human, all except one._

_He was a young but powerful spirit, or at least, young comparatively to the others, though at the same time the concept of age was lost to them, their identities, and their true nature was lost to all but the most powerful, who seldom answered man or spirit alike, the only time they were roused was when news reached that Durza had been slain, Durza had been the longest living Shade in centuries, perhaps the first and only shade to live that long, and his existence was a matter of curiosity and fear to most spirits. A few spirits disliked the concept of shades, not because of the evil shades brought, but because of the nature of tying down any spirit. A few of these spirits were amongst the unfortunate here now. But the spirit in question, the one who answered Anya, could only laugh as he heard her proposal._

"_You wish, to combine forces?"_

"_Yes, you will be forced to fuse with us anyway, and before that happens, they will kill you and merely give us the magic."_

"_That seems to be a complete positive for you."_

"_It would be, but we also lose our free will, but if even one of your kind survive and combine with us, we will be free, and you can attempt revenge, I will use magic to keep the spell from killing you, and to trick them into thinking it works, all I ask is that you meld seamlessly, fighting for dominance shall do neither of us any good."_

"_Deal." The spirit took the deal quickly, life came first. It observed as its 14 other brethren died, leaving only it as it rushed into the body. "Hmm, I believed I heard the voice of a female, but this is a boy."_

As the spirit entered Faris the room exploded into a cloud of dust. Dr. Mendel screamed as the debris merely struck him, turning he scowled at Alpha. "Why didn't you block faster!?" She rolled her eyes, turning to look at the dust.

"Doctor, I believe it's best you leave the room." Beta began, "I sense the being has great power."

"Oh? That's wonderful! That means my experiment was a succe- ahh!" Dr. Mendel rolled as a blade stabbed the area between his legs, barely missing. He looked up as the dust began to clear. Faris stood before them, but his hair was red, red like a slightly dark scarlet, hinting at the brown it originally was. His eyes glowed like shining rubies, bathing the doctor and the enhanced children in a sinister red light. After the first attack Faris stood, he inspected his arms and legs and hand, and began to feel his face and hair.

"…Epsilon?" Faris ignored them as he continued to feel around himself, as if making sure everything was there. He looked around at Dr. Mendel and the enhanced children, then at the terrified looking guards behind them. Then he began to laugh. At first it was simple chuckling, and soon it devolved into a fit of giggling. Followed by hysterical laughter that echoed across the halls.

"Damn, he's lost his mind." Alpha approached Faris. "Sorry doctor, it seems Epsilon's a bust, he was simply too weak and has lost his mind, luckily this dopey idiot's not doing anything so I ca-"

She was cut off as the shade's hand swung quickly, striking her in the solar plexus and knocking her into a wall. Beta without dropping a beat launched himself at the shade who dodged his charge in time to grab Theta, the middle child and only boy amongst the triplets. He smiled at Theta, who choked in his clutches, Theta and the other triplets were all a little younger than Faris, and were the weakest of the enhanced children, the shade proving to be stronger than them. Zeta and Eta screamed, charging at the shade, Eta, with her superior speed reached him first, kicking him with all her might, the shade had risen his arm to block it preemptively, watching as it snapped and he was knocked into a wall, Eta prepared to continue her attack until she was stopped by her sister, just in time as a ball of fire exploded in front of where she would have been. Dr. Mendel backed away in fear, turning he looked for his guards, but saw nothing, he turned back to the shade, who had now a bunch of particles surrounding him, like several rings orbiting around a planet.

"Oxygen, 65%" The shade began, looking almost bored as he played with the particles.

"What?" Dr. Mendel began.

"Oxygen, though, you people call it the ether, it's the part of the ether we take in to breath, it provides the catalyst for respiration. Though a simpler term would be the breathable air. Anyways." The shade put his finger to his forehead in an elegant fashion. "Oxygen, 65%, Carbon, 18.5%, Hydrogen, 9.5%, Calcium, 1.5%, Phosphorus, 1%, Sulfur, 0.3%, sodium, chlorine, and magnesium, 0.2% each, with trace elements taking the other space. Of course, this is based on mass and not number of atoms. And it varies on human per human, this is of course only if I broke a human down to its most basic elements. I could go deeper, but I don't believe I can analyze quarks." He chuckled again, "This boy, he knew…soo much. In fact," He lifted his other hand and Dr. Mendel looked in fascination as a little over one half of the particles began to form together, his eyes widened as a mass of water began to swirl around the shade.

"…Did you turn those particles into water?"

The shade smiled, "More along the lines of putting it back into water. Oxygen and Hydrogen, both extremely flammable substances, use heat to turn into water. Hilarious right?" He began dancing with his fingers, up and down the water danced along, mesmerizing everyone, he took a partition of it, sipping. "Delicious… would you like some?" He smiled, allowed the water to bunch up and absorb the fire ball launched at it. "I guess not."

Alpha charged the shade, who with his enhanced strength and speed easily dodged her attacks. "You are truly sloppy with your attacks you know…" He kicked her sharply in the butt, causing her to yelp and leap forward, she growled turning to him. He laughed at her red face as he launched his water forward, launching it at her, just as she struck him with red lightning. He groaned as he collapsed, but the water continued to wrap around her. The shade got up slowly, electricity still arcing through his body. "That hurt…so this is pain…" He smiled, "It's unpleasant." He arced the lightning into the water, which seemed to disappear into thin air almost instantly. As Alpha looked around in shock the shade launched a tiny flame towards her, when it reached only a few feet it released an explosion rocking the cavern. Beta, Zeta, Theta, and Eta rushed to the doctor's aid, blocking it from hitting and killing him, eventually the flames ceased, leaving a burnt, slowly healing, collapsed Alpha.

"Heal her!" Dr. Mendel yelled at Theta, who rushed to Alpha, aiding the healing process. Theta's face was in shock at Alpha's position, most of her skin was blackened, even bones showed signs of burning, several organs had ruptured and failed and her heart and brain had stopped several times before her magic kicked in. Mendel removed his cracked glasses, gripping them tightly. "Dammit! How did this happen?!"

The shade ran, he used the explosion to leave the room, he tried to teleport but discovered that the rooms seemed to resist magic that would interact with the outside, he'd have to find his way out of this maze to get out. He took the time to kill any guards he came across, absorbing their life energy, and following the habit of taking their memories for storage. He added an extra measure, expending some energy to speed the decomposition of the body, after a bit he broke apart the dead corpse into its base elements, which circled around him much like the ones had before. He found a storage room and rested there, consuming food in order to help restore his sanity.

"_This wasn't our deal." Anya's voice sounded indignant_

"_Deals change, and I have no need to follow your commands human, you should just surrender to me." The sprit's presence was oppressive as it attempted to fill every bit of Faris's mind, the conciousness of Anya and the others slain by Faris fought a slow losing battle as they turtle-shelled their part of Faris's mind, blocking their inner thoughts from the shade. "Besides, you are hiding something from me, who is the boy that he knows all this? What is earth? And why do I know what a nuclear bomb is, what it does, but not how to make it?"_

"_Because I'm not a psychopath." Damien muttered, the concept of nukes was something he knew of, but he never took the time to ever research how it was made in depth. He thanked whoever could listen that he never did even glance at a page talking about how to make a nuke. His memories would allow the shade to learn that. Of course, it's not like he had access to the necessary ingredients anyway. "I hope…"_

"_Hurry the fuck up!" Anya hissed. Damien turned to the nagging voice._

"_Yeah yeah Anya, it's your fault anyway…" The plan had been that Anya meld with the spirit, since Anya wasn't entirely alive, the resulting combination would be weakened, and easy enough for Faris and Damien to subdue. Unfortunately, Faris had been affected by the revelation of what happened to all the children, and in that moment the spirit sensed him and had attempted to possess him, the combined efforts of everyone barely held it back from completely subsuming Faris, but Faris was somewhere in the folds of Damien's memories. And he had to navigate to find them before the spirit overwhelmed them._ _"I hate my life…"_

The shade opened its eyes, it's attempts at subjugating the odd fractured mind of its host was slow going, its most powerful aspect had succumbed, but split egos resisted long enough to drag the core of the boy's mind into its recesses. The shade only had so much access to information, there were patches here and there that were missing. One such was the boy's original name, which he at least knew wasn't epsilon. "Alright…" The shade had to marvel at the boy's life experience, the boy seemed to live by a motto of everything being a possible learning experience. "Though it feels like he's lived longer than he is old, and like his life is split, whatever those experiences are, they feel more like dreams than anything else." He smiled, "Now…" He sat in contemplation, hiding himself with magic when a pair of guards entered the storeroom. He looked on with bemusement as the woman turned to the man and locked lips with him, pushing him into a wall. Turning around he continued to think. He was outnumbered, and two of the enemies were his betters in terms of raw power, while another three weren't so much weaker than him that they'd go down easy, the fast girl would especially prove troublesome, he was lucky he had the foresight to activate the boy's layer upon layer of hypothetical wards, the way the children attempted to kill him with wordless magic was astounding, as he had fought his magical stamina drained away like the wick of a match, the children all together simply had too much magical stamina combined for him to take care of. "I need power… no, I need allies." His thoughts were distracted by a loud scraping sound, the couple's wild throes moved a table, knocking supplies down and ruining his train of thought. Materializing the shade glared at the couple imperiously. "Do… you **MIND!?**" They screamed at the surprise then stood stock still in shock at the shade. The man began to rise, trying to sprint out, the shade merely flicked his finger, the man slumped dead, a few vital nerves and arteries to his brain severed. Before the woman could start screaming the shade muted her. "I said quiet." The shade thought to himself.  
_I need allies… wait_  
He turned to the woman, smiling, her tearful eyes flitted with fear as 10 spirits circled around her, the shade smiled. "If you survive this, find me." The spirits entered the woman's body as the room exploded into a purple and red light.

_Anya struggled as best she could, but 3 of the false egos had already succumbed to the shade. It was getting harder and harder to resist, like swimming in syrup in an attempt to swim for air, air was running out and it was getting harder to pump her tired arms._

"_Analogies to keep your mind busy? Interesting, did you learn this tactic from the boy you are hiding? What's his name? The three I just absorbed did not know, perhaps only you know…"_

_Anya didn't answer, she kept thinking about random normal things even as the spirit pressed down on their defenses. "Any day now Damien…" She muttered._

_Damien flitted through corridors of his memory, he could ignore any memory the shade had access to, as if Faris was hiding there, he would have discovered it. He also ignored any fully happy or joyous memories, as Faris's emotions that he felt weren't joyous, he felt simply guilt, the guilt of the inability to act when the moment demanded. Damien thought back to what the shade had said to Faris before trying to absorb him._

"_You don't have to be responsible anymore…" Damien paused, then turned towards a particularly painful memory, "Fuck…"_

"That makes 23…" The shade hid himself as the twenty-third shade successfully formed, it was a man, maniacally laughing as he decapitated the soldier near him.

"We are Hruk!"

"That's a ridiculous sounding name." The young shade laughed at the older one's theatrics. "Hm… it reminds me of Varaug, the shade Eragon, Saphira, and Arya took out…" As he observed Hruk's path of destruction he saw one soldier screaming.

"How did the shade escape! We shackled it tight!" Before the man was decapitated, he disappeared in a flurry of light and sound, Hruk looked around angrily before running off to find someone or something else to slaughter. The man looked around in fear, seeing himself face to face with a shade child.

"Hello sir, could you help a boy scout out? I'm looking for my 10th badge! Once I do, I get to graduate the cub scouts! I just need my find the shade badge, I need to know where the shade you captured is being held! Then I promise I'll let you go!" The man did not answer, causing the shade to sigh. "Didn't think so." He tore into the man's mind, finding the information. "Oh…." He smiled. He slew the man, taking his sword and armor, and breaking his body into base elements, that large explosion would be needed again, and he had collected a large number of base elements. The trip to the guards was quick and painless, for the shade. For the guards at least it was quick. After taking any gear he considered good he broke open the door. Peering inside he saw a shade, the shade was in bad shape, muscles and ligament torn, several fractures, and his blood nearly drained. He looked gaunt as he slumped up. Eyes still glowing he radiated ancient power despite his condition. The shadeling grinned as he approached, hand extended the shade smirked back.

"Hmmm… kill me."

"What?" The young shade was taken aback, no shade simply gave up, even if the spirit eventually longed to be free, shade's craved life and living, if only they could continue to take more, that was his goal, that was why he wanted to escape, there were so many human sheep to sheer and slaughter outside. For this shade to have given into despair. He was an oddity. The shadeling gathered his energy, eyes glowing their red light, but instead of fire or lightning, healing came. The older shade's eyes opened in shock as his body began filling with energy and vitality, and the fog covering his mind began to lift. He looked at the young shade in confusion as his bonds broke and his natural magical abilities began to resurge. The young shade turned to leave before the older shade regained his senses and attacked.

"Wait!" He turned to see the older shade bow.

"This… this is new." The young shade used magic to inspect the shade's body as he spoke.

"You saved my life; I will serve you until one of us dies." The young shade observed that the older one's mind, while recovering, had been severely damaged by oxygen deprivation.

_It's not that he's merely misplaced his memories, too much of his old mind was destroyed to ever hope to be recovered. Unless…_

The young shade gathered some matter surrounding the shade, he weaved magic with it. "I'll need you to swear in the ancient language, and surrender your mind to me for a short bit." The shade opened its mind, allowed the shadeling to delve into it, discovering whatever scraps of information it had left, the identity now within was surprising child or animal like, though still fiercely intelligent. He smiled, speaking a few words in the ancient language. The shade before him shuddered as he uttered his true name, but nothing else happened.

_I would have sworn at least the spirit would have recalled, perhaps spirits simply don't have true names, though since it tied itself to a flesh body a malady of the flesh like memory loss could perhaps be a natural occurrence_

"Alright then…" After uttering the words in the ancient language to the older shade he knelt before the boy, announcing that the younger shade was his master. "So, what is your name?"

"It has slipped my mind."

"Oh, well make one up." Just as he said that a shade came into the room. Faris flinched as the shade charged him, only to watch in awe as the shade who had just sworn fealty to him grabbed the attacking shade and ripped his chest out, crushing the heart instantly. The shade's hand had been destroyed in the process but it quickly healed itself. The younger shade turned to the escaping spirits, taking two, he destroyed them, giving one to the shade and one to himself to destroy. "Idiot…" If a shade attacked another shade instantly it wasn't a shade he could work with, they'd merely be more obstacles. He turned to his new guardian, "Well, you are useful, come up with a name yet?"

"No master…"

"Hmm… alright, then Atlas, because you are a fucking unit. An undeniable beefcake. Might as well name you Hulk." The shade laughed at his joke, then looked at the older shade, "It… it means you are strong, Atlas is the name of a mythological being known as a titan, he is famous for his sheer strength, which he used to lift the weight of the world since time immemorial. According to the myth."

The older shade smiled, "Atlas… I like it…"

"Good." The younger shade began walking forward. "Come along then."

"What is your name master?"

"…Shit."


	59. Chapter 59

Damien's_ first friend came from an unlikely source. His high school, Amity Vale's Academy for the gifted, was a very expensive but famous private school in his area. Every 4 years they would release a lottery, picking between the top 5 students in the district to be admitted, the lucky student was a freshman, much like Damien. His name was Jeremy Renolds. Jeremy was an odd kid, he lacked the manners and sophistry one would expect attending such a prestigious academy, and had gotten on the bad side on one of the more popular clichés when he ruined a project of theirs. A mishap he maintained was accidental. Damien and Jeremy were two very different people, Damien was reserved and calmer, while Jeremy was boisterous and manic. While Damien was somewhere in the upper-mid echelons of popularity, Jeremy was rock bottom. Though his friendship with Damien helped a little. Damien avoided conflict like the plague, though when push came to shove his fitness and years of martial arts made him a decent fighter for his age, Jeremy was hard-pressed to hold himself back at any little provocation, and was a terrible fighter. Damien didn't find himself to be of great intellect, citing his studious nature more to the strict schedule his parents put him through, and the numerous tutors on their payroll. Jeremy on the other hand seemed like one of those one in a million geniuses, destined for great things. He was no slouch either, his studious nature without anyone forcing him impressed and bewildered Damien, who studied more for the sake of placating his parents than anything else. Keeping up with opposites, while Damien's parents could be described as clod, if not neglectful or even hostile to their son's feelings, Jeremy's parents were warm and kind, even with the little with which they had. And in that lay the greatest opposite, while Damien's family was amongst the richest in their school, Jeremy's parents had only recently pushed themselves out of abject poverty. Despite all these differences they were the best of friends for an uncanny reason, their love for the Anarchal Reign series of books. It was about a boy with a miserable life thrust into a secret world of magic and monsters. Both of them longed for the next book in the series, what Damien never told his friend was that his dad was friends with the author, and had gotten an early version of the book._

_Damien sat in the back seat of the nondescript car his father's coach drove them in, he had gotten his father's permission to drop Jeremy off due to his distance from the school. He turned to look at Jeremy, who reeked of milk. What Jeremy never told him, and what he never realized, was that Jeremy was being bullied by two brothers, Bryant and Mason, they were notorious for fighting, and got away with everything they did due to their family's contribution to the school. Jeremy had gotten their ire in the first place when he spoke to Bryant's girlfriend, and at the same time made a fool of the boy. Bryant and his girlfriend broke up a little after when Bryant's insecurity caused him to confront her. And he'd have Jeremy on his hitlist for the year. As far as Damien had known, they had only done small things. Tease him, push him a bit, spill food and drink. What he wouldn't know until later was that they'd also beat him up and take pictures of him in compromising positions, in order to blackmail him and make him do things for them, such as school work, and buying illegal paraphernalia._

_Jeremy had been silent the trip home. Damien had tried everything to have small talk with him, but to no avail._

"_He's not here is he…"_

_Damien drifted to his memory of receiving the book from his dad…_

_Damien looked at his old father. Solomon Wilson was an interesting man, author of best-selling crime novels, husband to a state legislator attempting to make her name known on the national stage. As a public figure he and his wife put up the front of a loving and strong couple, with a gifted and well-rounded son who got into no trouble. The only reason Jeremy was tolerated was due to the fact he was famous for being a gifted child and their son being friends with a pauper was good publicity. Damien moved the bitter thoughts from his head as he stood attention in front of his father, who was busy rereading a draft for his newest novel, a story about finding the real culprit to an otherwise straightforward murder case._

"_So…" Damien flinched as his father spoke. He hadn't remembered doing anything particularly egregious, he'd kept at the top of his classes. He was excelling at the extracurriculars, and while he was behind Jeremy grades wise, it was a constant since his one incorrect extra credit question._

"_Yes father?" Damien asked._

"_My good friend wishes for my help for a section of his story." Damien cocked his head, his father often gave advice for stories, and was well known in the author circle for his insightful help. Even James Howard, the author of the Anarchal Reigns series was a good friend of his. Damien had the benefit of meeting the man once due to his father. "The main character is being tried for something he didn't do; he needs my help in placing evidence and letting it be gathered."_

"_Oh?" Damien still didn't understand what was required._

"_I believed I needed what he had so far, so I could contextualize the situation. And I felt perhaps, even after reading it, my opinion wasn't enough."_

_He's definitely lying, Damien felt defensive as his father looked at him, his father never looked for Damien's opinion, he doubted that was what he sook now. _

"_So," His father continued, taking out a hefty pamphlet and handing it to his son. "I thought perhaps you'd enjoy reading it, perhaps you could let me know what you think." Damien fake smiled graciously, looking at the book, but his smile faltered as he read the title._

"_This… this is…"_

"_You are a fan of James Howard, no?" Solomon smiled, "I know I'm not the easiest father, but you have been doing adequate work with your studies and extracurriculars. So, when James suggested I let you read his work before it gets published, I thought perhaps you were currently deserving of it, please make sure you keep up the good work."_

_Thanking his father profusely Damien ran to his room to read it. He loved every minute of it, and read until it was late past his curfew, turning off the lights he turned to sleep, only to flinch in shock as he saw a red eyed red-haired youth looking at him._

"_I finally found you." The shade began, smiling. Damien could only stare in shock as the shade inched closer. "You know, that woman and those filths were annoying to get past, their ranks only increased as I ripped the minds from the men I slaughtered in the physical world. But now all that's left is the boy. And here I am, it seems there are two of you." He walked closer, hand outstretched, only to be interrupted by the slamming of doors. Damien flinched as the jostling let him realize what part of the memory he was in, his mother had come back from a political rally, she and his father had had a loud discussion, waking Damien from the rest he would have originally had. This distraction allowed Damien to move, he slipped away from the shade and leapt out the window, hurtling to the floor he kept his eyes open, passing in as he slipped deeper into his memories._

The shade opened his eyes. Looking around for a bit he scowled as he spied Atlas, who was busy stuffing a pack with provisions. This was the third store room they raided of weapons and food, and the large sacks they dragged along were beginning to look ridiculous.

"Master?" Atlas inquired, curious as to his charge's sour look.

"Nothing important, something just slipped my mind. And he was really, really, annoying." The shade sighed in consternation, "You'd think we'd run into more shades by now, I made maybe thirty of them." As if answering his prayers, he ran into the first shade he created, she was now accompanied by one with 20 or so spirits within him. They looked on to the younger shade, approaching him quickly, they appraised Atlas coolly, wary of his power.

"I am Yolin." The male spoke, radiating pride as he did. "You created me correct?"

The younger shade's nod made him smile. "I had wondered, the way we were summoned, you targeted our peoples who wanted to possess a body."

The female smiled lasciviously as she held Yolin's shoulder. "It has been centuries since we've held the female form. So, you have our thanks." She winked at the younger shade, who merely frowned.

"Unfortunately, this one's body had not gone through puberty, so any offers can't be taken upon." He looked around. "Where are the others?"

"Most are dead. They attacked the enhanced children, luckily whatever you planned worked, and none of us have been fated to be the fuel."

The shade smiled. "Good, I hoped as much. So, Yolin, erm…" He turned to the female shade.

"Vulna."

"Vulna, why are you two here?"

"We wanted to see who was powerful enough to summon us all here, though it's surprising that one of our own would do so." Yolin began, "We trust no one, not even ourselves, so to trust another?"

The young shade laughed, "Who said I trust you?" The two shades joined in laughter as well, Atlas just looked on confused.

"Ahh yes…" Vulna lashed out, attempting to behead the young shade, who's ward blocked her attack quickly. He smiled as her hand caught on fire, a smile matched as she struck again, only to be this time slammed to the floor, her blade in the young shade's hand as he brought it to her throat.

"Well? Have I passed your test?" The young shade kept his eyes on Vulna, ignoring the proximity of Yolin's hand to his neck. Yolin for his part kept his composure as Atlas's fingers were dangerously close to his eyes.

"Yes… you did." Yolin retracted his hand, causing Atlas and the young shade to relax as well. As the shade got off of Vulna she stretched.

"Hmm… despite your age you are stronger than me."

"Perhaps the physical age and experience of your host is addling your mind, my host is stronger than yours, and I have more spirits." He turned around, Atlas following after. "Come on then, we have more brethren to gather, there's still 4 or so of them left I gather."

"All right… boss, though…" Vulna put a finger to her lip, "Do I have a name for our leader?" Atlas looked on as well.

The shade smiled as he turned to face them. "Yes… you do…" He looked at Atlas, "Before the gods, before the titans, were the protogenoi, the very constants of the world. Of Greek cosmology of course, I don't find it true, else my host would have been dancing in those grey fields, or doing homework in Tartarus." He chuckled at his joke. "But I find it interesting, that Hades, who is mistaken sometimes for the Greek equivalent of the Abrahamic Lucifer…"

The shades cocked their heads at the young shade's nonsense, neither they nor their host bodies had heard of these terms.

"… Anyways, despite being more along the lines a neutral god of the afterlife, Hades is mistaken for Lord of Hell, when that true title comes to a being predating even Hades' father, Kronos, the protogenoi Tartarus." He smiled, smoke wafting in his hand to form a diorama of the day's events, the shades watched with interest as the smoke filled the floor, and formed a recreation of spirits entering humans. More often than not the human simply exploded and died. Some of the shades that formed were little more than bumbling idiots destroyed by their soberer brethren. They smiled for each of their respective formations. "Tartarus is the lord and representation of Tartarus, land of the damned, where the evil goes to be punished for eternity. Don't get me wrong." He stopped in front of a pile of rubble, snapping his finger it lifted to reveal a cowering soldier. "Tartarus himself is as evil, if not worse, than the ones he destroys." He smiles as a small wick of fire erupts on the soldier's hand, who begins to scream and panic, trying to put out the small flame that gets progressively bigger as it travels through his body. No matter the method of attempting to put it out, the fire continued, spreading to his other hand and reaching his legs before snaking up his torso and face. "But Tartarus's evil allowed him to enjoy the suffering he brought along." The shade smiled, "Think about that… a being of pure evil, a force of nature designed with the sole purpose of spreading misery, pain, and fear. The father of the mother of monsters, so in that regard the true progenitor of hell on earth and the monsters that infest it." He smiled at the 2 shades, who regarded him now with a bit of uncertainty and distaste. "That name is absolutely fitting. You want my name?"

"Die shade scum!" The soldier, fully on fire and with nothing to lose charged the young shade in a suicide attack. Only to be cut at the legs, tumbling on the floor face first he screamed in agony as his raw skin scraped on the floor, the fire going out prematurely the shade lifted the still breathing struggling man into the air, taking the sword that had been aimed at his chest. He aligned it with the man's chest, aiming to cut into his heart in one motion. He cocked his arm back, savoring his victim's fear. Smiling he turned to his fellow shades.

"I…AM…TARTARUS." And let the blade plunge…

_Damien plunged deeper into his memories; he had allowed nostalgia to put him into a false sense of security. Skipping past the point where he finished the book, he found the moment trouble began to brew._

"_If Faris isn't hiding somewhere here, then it's over."_

_Damien had let Jeremy borrow the book, but was expecting it back today. Damien hadn't found Jeremy in the free period at the end of the school day. He had at first believed that Jeremy simply left school early during free period. He often had nothing to do, and on especially slow days he slipped out. Damien hadn't expected to be fighting against two older students._

"_What happened?" He hissed at Jeremy, who has badly bruised behind him. Facing the two of them were two seniors. Mason and Bryant, they were siblings and nephews to an oil tycoon. Making them the richest students in the school bar none. They had spent some of their formative years in Brownsville, New York, with the people's motto of 'Never Ran, Never Will.' Damien sighed, those two had gotten into vicious fights before, but their father put enough into the school and police force that they could get away with almost anything except murder and a few other equivalent crimes. Right now, they looked ready to murder Jeremy._

"_Oh!?" Jeremy scowls, smiling at Damien before giving Mason and Bryant hostile looks. "Those idiots tried to recruit me for a project they had, but I declined them graciously, and they decided to reply in turn."_

_Mason was nursing a bump on his forehead. "Retard! You threw a rock at my forehead!"_

"_That's not cool language Mason!" Damien said, "Stop it anyway! A teacher is on their way!"_

"_Yeah right! No one's at this part of the school! It's undergoing renovation, so no cameras or nothin' and you didn't have the time." Bryant, walked up and shoved Damien. "Now move so that I can teach your little boyfriend a lesson bitch."_

_Jeremy for his part tried to tackle Bryant, but was pushed back, slamming into a wall. Before Bryant could continue his pummeling, Damien pressed on his shoulder, causing him to spasm in pain. "Leave, him ALONE!"_

"_Augh!" Bryant screamed out. Mason roared, charging Damien, he struck him in the face, Damien's head snapped to the side as he took the blow, and he doubled over as Bryant struck again in the stomach. Jeremy leapt on Bryant's back, causing him to tumble. Jeremy began hitting Bryant on the back of the head repeatedly until Mason kicked him hard. Damien heard the audible crack as Jeremy's arm broke. Damien looked at Jeremy's arm, then at Mason who kicked it. Mason grinned at him fiercely. _

"_Well how about that? I broke the b-" He clutched his face as Damien hurled a rock hard at his temple. Bryant couldn't reach in time as Damien struck at Bryant hard punching and kicking and striking with all his force. Eventually Bryant reverted to the fetal position, crying out in pain. _

"_Stop it now!" Damien turned his head sharply, seeing Mason holding Jeremy by the throat, pocket knife in his hand. "Let my brother go or I'll cut your boyfriend."_

"_Then let go of Jeremy." Damien looked at Mason evenly, "I don't trust you, if you so much as cut him…"_

_Mason grinned, pressing the blade to Jeremy's neck. Damien flinched and backed off. "Chicken…" Mason began before losing focus as Jeremy smashed the back of his head into the older boy's nose. Jeremy grabbed Damien by the arm and they sprinted off. Damien took out his phone, dialing 911._

_Bryant and Mason both had several bruises and a concussion, and Mason had a broken nose, while Bryant's wrist was fractured. Damien had a few cuts and bruises as well. Jeremy was the most injured, a broken arm, fractured leg, broken nose, and a severe concussion. As soon as Bryant and Mason and Damien were known, they were released to their respective households, but Jeremy was stuck in the penitentiary for half a day. It took Damien arguing with his father for the first time to get someone to help Jeremy. The school was no better, they had wanted to sweep everything under the rug, but Bryant and Mason's family were out for blood, their little angels could do no wrong in their eyes. But Damien's mother was a politician, his parents also made substantial donations, and they wanted a punishment for Bryant and Mason. The school decided then that they would spin a story of Jeremy attacking all three, thus exonerating the three rich kids from any trouble. Damien vehemently opposed that idea, but his father and mother quickly agreed, they couldn't have their son be known for starting fights, so they kept him in the home as he recovered._

"_I hated this." Damien though as he skipped past the long month._

_Rushing to Jeremy's home Damien found it vacant. Asking around he learned that after the news of Jeremy's trouble. His parents had no choice but to move. He had returned dejected, but that wasn't the least of his problems._

"_You stupid moron!" His father smacked him in the face. "Where's the fucking book!" Damien paled as his father continued. "The book! John is on my back because he found his book sold for $100,000 then distributed before the official release! It! It was that stupid friend of yours wasn't it?! I knew I shouldn't have let you associate with him!"_

_Damien tried to argue with his father, defend his friend, but nothing he said or did could convince him otherwise._

"…"

_Damien skipped ahead, he skipped ahead again and again, the school year was about to end when he returned to his memories._

"_Jeremy…"_

_The boy who used to be his friend smiled at him, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. "Oh… it's you."_

"_What happened?"_

"_You fucking know what happened." Jeremy grinned, "You all left me the shaft, and I spent a half- year in juvie. The only reason I'm here is because the school decided to settle my lawsuit, drop my expulsion, and readmit me."_

"_Jeremy… I"_

"_What?" Jeremy laughs, "You didn't mean for it to happen? Then where the fuck were you? When Mason and Bryant began bullying me? When the school pressed charges? While I was in juvie? Do you know my hospital bills nearly bankrupted my parents? Hell, the only reason I'm talking to you is because I guess I do owe you one. Hospital bills and a decent lawyer require money. And a bestselling series of books being sold early makes a lot."_

"_You sold the book?" Damien felt a flash of anger, but it was followed by crushing guilt._

"_$67,000 Damien, that's how much it cost to fix me up. My parents went bankrupt and I almost became a ward of the state, hell they tried to take my little siblings." Jeremy looked on angrily, "My smarts and hard work, my parent's kindness? My supposed friendship with you? That did nothing. Money's what talks in this world." Jeremy brushed past Damien, "I already know I have to tolerate you for at least two more years until you graduate, but you better fuck off and leave me alone, I don't want to see you more than I have to."_

_As Jeremy left the room seemed to darken, Damien turned to see a boy, he backed up in fear, but recognized the lengthy dark brown hair._

"…_Faris?"_

"…_Is this when you resolved to be more proactive?" Faris looked at Damien, teary-eyed. "Too little too late wouldn't you think?" Time seemed to skip ahead, day and night flashing back and forth within seconds, to a fateful night. Damien could only look on in helplessness as he saw himself biking home._

"_I decide to try and help my friend, and he ends up jailed and ridiculed, taking the fall for my actions, and he almost lost his siblings. I try and help a woman I don't know, and she ends up being a thief and killing me because I put down her victim and tried to stop her from killing him. I use magic to save a girl I like, and her parents are murdered because the spell I used put suspicion into the girl's teacher. I then led to the death of an innocent coach driver. Then after that, I barely save his wife and son, only to leave and return too late to save 3 children, I save the rest yes!" Faris begins shouting, "But then because I acted and saved the few that remained, and lost my temper! Just like I did with Jeremy! Now I'm here! In jail! What Jeremy went through! Without rich assholes who care more about their image! I put my friends through so much! And now I'm here rotting like I deserve!" Faris began crying, "Isn't it better if we just give up? Every decision I make screws us over… so a shade would be a better choice, right?" Damien looked at the crying boy in front of him, he breathed in, then out, smacking him hard on the face._

"_What the fuck is wrong with you?" He cocked his eyebrow. "Is that why you fucking gave up? Because of bad decision making?" Damien held his hand to his forehead. "You and I know this shade wants to kill everyone and everything right? Are you so scared of the bad choices you may accidentally make that you'd rather leave it to a psychopath, just so you can say you aren't responsible?" Faris's silence served to infuriate him, "Where's the dickhead who killed and punished those gangsters with impunity, why do you care now huh?"_

"_Shut up!" Faris screamed covering his ears._

_Damien sighed, like it or not, no matter how smart, or mature, or scary Faris could be, he was ten, Damien couldn't expect him to keep mature. "Fine then, sometimes you don't want to bear responsibility." Damien grinned sardonically, "Isn't that why I'm here? I already told you, I'd take the blame, I'd take the hate, I'd suffer, I just want to feel, if only vicariously. That shade's not…" Damien turned his head to the side… "No…"_

_Faris looked on in confusion then fear. "Wait… Venka…"_

"_That energy, it's hers definitely… what's going on?"_

Tartarus licked the blood off his mouth, the enhanced children stood before him, together but exhausted. Though he saw a new child he hadn't seen before.

"New recruits already? Did you replace me?" He looked the fat boy up and down. "Damn, experimenting on children must be like Burger King, because that's a fucking Whopper Junior right there." The large boy for his part remained silent, he cowered behind Gamma, who seemed to be quite protective of him, which made the shade chuckle. "Come on now, you guys should be doing better, there are only 10 of us." He turned to his shade allies, his group comprising of himself, Yolin, Vulna, and Atlas had grown to a sizeable posse. Even after losing Yolin and Vulna, who had escaped to the surface world then died. He only truly became wary when he first lost Hruk, then almost lost Tartarus, who returned to him saying he was defeated by a group of children and adults. If someone as strong as Tartarus could be held down by the enhanced children, before they could leave, they had to get rid of Dr. Mendel. Their goal was the slaughter of every human in this facility before turning their attention outside. No need to keep loose ends.

"Dammit! Dammit! How'd you find us?!" Dr. Mendel scowled angrily.

"That light…" Tartarus pointed to a secret room, "The light is suppressed, but that room can only hold it back so much, so we followed the trail here. If it's a shade, that's another recruit, if it's one of you…" He narrowed his eyes, "No need to keep a dangerous thing alive." He laughed as Dr. Mendel began to run into the room. "Take care of the others, Atlas! With me!" He sprinted after the Doctor, entering the room just in time to see him flee into the wall, before he could destroy it the irresistible smell of power caused him to turn to the youths on the wall. "It seems they weren't turned yet; they may be useful sha…" He looked at the girl in the middle, she was likely pretty, though the bruises and burns on her hid that, one eye was sealed shut from being struck, but her piercing gemstone like green eyes shined through. Her hair, a deep auburn spilled over her side. Looking at her he felt a conflicting amount of emotions, fear, hatred, desire of that power, lust, pain, joy, and… "Venka…" His host's memories, in all their completeness began to flood him. He scowled angrily as he realized the depths of whatever feeling.

_The spirit seemed to flicker within as the combined onslaught of Faris and Damien began to strike at it, fighting back in order to retake their mind. Whatever pain, whatever angst, whatever hurdle they were going through, Faris had already sworn in the ancient language to protect Venka. And he was going to keep it._

"_It took you long enough…" Anya's facsimile looked on with smug satisfaction as she and the other bundles of memories looked on as the original owner of the mind began to fight against the interloper. The shade was still stronger, but now it wasn't by an unwinnable margin._

"_Damn you… you should have just surrendered." The spirit whined._

"_I won't give you my body!" Damien retorted, "I won't give you my mind! And I'll especially not give you Venka!"_

_The spirit was surprised. "How can anyone fight against me?! How can a mortal compete with a spirit's mind!?"_

"_Idiot" Damien grinned, "Just cause you've taken over the body doesn't mean we in the mind can't do anything about it." Anya smiled as she recalled her efforts to take over Faris's body, he had already lapsed mentally allowing her to access his magical reserves and use it to harm his body on the outside, further weakening him. It wouldn't be farfetched for Faris and Damien to do the same, but instead use the magic to strengthen their minds as they fought Tartarus. "As long as we don't give in to despair you can't defeat us."_

Tartarus clutched his forehead.

"Master?" Atlas began, only to be silenced by Tartarus's hand motion away. The young shade looked at the children, who stared into the smoke covering him warily. Stepping out of the shadows the first thing he saw was the girl scream. His heart twinge and he felt his unruly host's mind falter slightly. Grinning he turned to the boy who just asked his name.

"Faris huh…" He spoke louder, "Was that this body's name?"

"_Checkmate mortals" The spirit crowed, he cared not as Damien and Faris began to rapidly free the bundles of conciousness and memory called Anya, and as they began to free the others as well, Damien and Faris's attacks were desperate and straightforward, they wanted to protect Venka. "Surrender and I'll spare her life." He frowned. "Disappointing."_

Tartarus leapt forward, "Kverst abr Verkr! Ramr hvass blädren abr verkr! Eldrvarí un vegarí!" (Painful cut! Strong sharp blade of pain! Burn and kill!) His fingers began to spark in dark flames, which formed semi cohesive talons that upon coming in contact with Venka's skin would burn and cut and inflict pain, before ultimately killing her. _Despite the power she radiates, those shackles keep her at bay. And she can't defend herself._ A cruel smirk hit his face as he envisioned her flesh being torn asunder and her lovely eyes losing their light.

_The sprit seemed at the height of his power crowing in victory as the others inside Faris began to falter. They were disjointed and weaker, their numbers having swollen when the shade partook in the slaughter of the men and women of this underground world._

"_You've lost" Damien and Faris said, smiling._

Tartarus widened his eyes as his body involuntarily twisted, his hand missing the mark by inches and burying itself smoothly into the wall beside it. His face and body close enough to Venka's form to emulate an intimate embrace he shuddered as every hostile thought he had towards her seemed to weigh on and shackle him, keeping him from moving. "What… is… this?!"

"_You discovered it yourself, didn't you?" Damien began, "When you discovered Atlas's true name…"_

"_You…" The spirit began…_

"_The true name of the body does not change, just because the spirit took over. It only changes with growth and experience, and memory." Faris continued. "I took a binding oath to protect Venka, even if you have my mind, my body remembers, and it won't let you do as you please, you may be a creature of magic, and you have taken my body, but the ancient language is the language of truth, and unless you knew the name, you can't unbind it. My body knows you tried to stab Venka, so it stopped your movements. Then you wanted to kill her with a word of death, so it halted your mind and control over magic. You may be a shade, but part of Mendel's spell binding you to my body's condition still lasts, all I did was protect you from being killed by that connection."_

"_You baited me!"_

"_Yes and no, we didn't have full confidence in whether it would work or not. We didn't even mean for you to bind with Faris." Damien began, "That's why I needed to find Faris after the binding was incomplete, he was the one who made the oath, if he wasn't present, and was in the limbo of my memories you didn't have access to, then this might not have worked. Your shocking jump scare helped me along Tartarus, thanks for the help."_

Tartarus's eyes flickered from their iridescent red to Faris's natural blue countless times, before he collapsed.

_The spirit began to panic as the egos he had previously slain and absorb began to bind to him, mixing in with him, holding him down._

"_Malthinae" Damien said, Faris echoed his words, as did Anya, as did Uglauw, as did Nog and Jespen, as did each of the rest of the vagabonds, and each of the guards working for Mendel slain by Tartarus._

"_But! Don't you hate the boy?!" Tartarus screamed out, as he felt his conciousness begin to tear itself away from his power, perhaps this was death, though it was different from what happened to his spirit brethren, what happened to them was less painful._

"_Of course, I hate him." Anya said, "In reality, I'm not the real Anya, I'm a collection of her memories, the real Anya's drooling in an irreparable comma. Uglauw and his men were burned to a crisp and are probably almost done decaying. And half the soldiers in here were failed shade transformations. We all hate the boy, because the only reason you're here, we're here, is because of him, but also…" Anya smiled, "We'd be dead or gone either way, right? There's something a little thrilling, and a little less boring with continuing on through someone else, even if that's the someone who slew us, isn't there?"_

_Uglauw continued, sword in hand as he and the constructs of his cohorts held down the spirit's movements as they seemed to split itself from its essence. "Faris promised to protect my wife and daughter, he kept my daughter safe in my absence, and he promised my men and I vengeance against Mendel and Rembrant, and against the Scarlett Heart, they turned us into these monsters, and while we're paying for our sins, and will continue to pay for them, they need an accounting."_

"_Oh?" Tartarus's spirit radiated mirth and disgust at the same time, "You're all weak. The boy didn't have the nerve to admit he killed you, so he's keeping you here to ease his guilt? And you'd rather have this pitiful existence than die?"_

"_What of you Tartarus? Do you feel nothing for your fellow spirits?"_

"_Please, spare me your pleasantries. You know nothing of what my people went through, what our sacrifice entailed. The only reason all of you pathetic bags of meat are alive today is thanks to us, yet you seek power and take advantage of us, and those of us who want to experience life again join with you. Evil humans tend to seek our power, and when the shade dies, their evil stays with us, and so on, and so forth, no matter where we go and what we do, you all tie me down, you think I'd want to peaceful cohabitate with you? I'd rather your people all gone, and if using you as a vessel quickens that…" The shade spoke no longer._

"_You have a Grey outlook on life Tartarus." Damien said. "To you, to all shades normally, friendship and love are meaningless concepts, power is everything right? Power in any form? Be it control, raw power… money maybe even. Are you sure that feeling isn't from the humans you despise?" Tartarus remained silent. Faris felt a massive presence fill his mind only to back away almost as instantaneously, as if it never existed in the first place. Ignoring it he turned to Tartarus, who had by now given up._

"_Laesa…" (Lock) Tartarus found himself in a dark room, unable to see, hear, touch, or smell, much like when he was a spirit, but now also unable to move or sense the world around him. As if he was dead, or maybe the world before was a dream, and this was reality. Then he heard something, the steady rhythm of a drum, soon, he realized, it wasn't a drum, but a heartbeat._

"_Humph, that idiot couldn't kill me either…"_

Venka looked at Faris, or the boy she used to know as Faris on with tear stained eyes, collapsed on the floor and unconscious as a larger shade approached them. A tearing sound was heard as Seya ripped herself free from her bindings, the shock of Tartarus's impact enough to allow her the final push, but at a cost.

"Dammit." Seya's hair turned white as she faced down Atlas, before it had taken all of their combined might to defeat him, but he wasn't dead. A revived shade is more powerful that it was before. Atlas towered over Seya; who's hands slowly began to reform. Seeing as the shade had his attention of Faris, she took the opportunity to free each of them. They turned to face Atlas, Seya taking the lead.

"Step back little girl, my master awakes." Atlas began, veins popping on his knuckles as he stared down the children menacingly. As he spoke the red-haired youth groaned, beginning to get up. His complexion had lost its slight pallor and was returning to the darker skin tone they recognized. He opened his eyes, blue as a clear and crisp day they looked at his friends, then at Atlas, then back to Venka.

"I… I have explaining to do…" Faris began, smiling awkwardly as Venka rushed to his embrace.

"YOU MORON!" she screamed. "YOU ARE A MONUMENTAL IDIOT! WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!" She began to cry. Faris before he could say anything else was tackled by Nya, then Katya, then Morgan, then the twins, and even Seya. Barely squeezing out from the bottom of their pile hug the youth looked up unto Atlas's massive frame.

"Erm…"

"Yes master?"

"I thought Tartarus was your master…" Faris began…

"Whether you are known as Faris, or known as Tartarus, you freed me. And if Tartarus had willed it, you would be dead." Faris thought to the foreign presence in his mind that left quickly, it had likely been Atlas.

"How're you holding up champ?" Morgan said, as they let him up.

"Oh, you know…" Faris began with a smirk, "Still in one pie-" At first, he didn't understand their horrified expressions, or Atlas's face morphing into a mask of fury, then he felt a tearing sensation from the small of his back through his chest. He looked down to see a curved blade skewered through his heart. Turning his neck, he saw Alpha, gash on her arm slowly healing, eyes bathed in red fury, she pulled out her blade, letting him bleed out faster. Delta, Theta, Eta, and Zeta charged in behind her, dark blood on their hands not belonging to them. That's when Faris realized the energy that belonged to the shades Tartarus had recruited were gone. But that was the last thing he realized before everything went black. Scratch that, second to last thing, as he felt what was the equivalent to the sound of glass shattering before he hit the floor.


	60. Chapter 60

Bartholomew looked around nervously, Ventus was roosting on his hand as he carried the bird. Gamma to his side, with Dr. Mendel in front of them, alongside them was Beta, who likely was why Bartholomew felt the chill up his spine.

_I'm not cut out for fighting. _He thought.

_Danger, danger, take care, the one with eyes of blue looks at you like a hunter after injured prey. Waiting for you to show a sign of weakness._

_THANKS, VENTUS! I WOULDN'T HAVE GUESSED THAT MYSELF._ Bartholomew was angry, and tired, and frustrated, and hungry.

"Doctor," Beta began, "Forgive me, but why are you bringing this boy along? You didn't designate him for experimentation, but you also didn't leave him in the holding cell like the others for later shadefication."

Dr. Mendel smiled, "I received news that the fool Rembrant died, and was outed as a member of our cause. I can't trust any of his allies, so I need a new bank." He turned to Bartholomew, "This boy's the nephew of Mortimer, one of the richest men in that city, Mortimer doesn't strike me as a political man, and based on what we found on the boy, he dotes on him decently enough." He laughed, "Besides, it seems Gamma finds him comely, and I'm not a cruel master."

_Great, a hostage situation._ Bartholomew thought. As he lifted Ventus to his shoulder he felt something press on his back sharply. Turning he saw it was Beta.

"The doctor may keep you in his good graces for now, but do not take that for granted."

Bartholomew nodded, but rolled his eyes as he turned. Eliciting a laugh from Dr. Mendel, "You are quite calm."

"It's not my first kidnapping, a lot of people realize my uncle's rich, yes." Bartholomew walked with them. He worried for his newfound friends.

Seya looked on in rage as she and her friends did their best to defend themselves from the combined mental onslaught of the enhanced children. But they were exhausted. Alpha laughed as her mind pressed down on Seya's.

"Poor little Omega. Are you mourning Epsilon? You'll be joining him soon."

"Her name's Seya, not Omega you bitch…" Alpha turned to look at Venka, who's eyes filled with a red aura. "And his name is Faris!" Alpha's eyes widened as the ground below her exploded.

"_So, this is how it ends…" Damien looked at Anya. "You know, I'd say this was a pleasure, but I think I hate you only a little less than you hate me."_

"_You're awfully calm for someone about to die." Anya looked at Damien oddly._

"_I mean, I've died before, though I don't remember the pain being this bad. But really…" Damien grinned, "hehe… this is really bad…"_

"_How long does the brain have before oxygen deprivation starts killing brain cells?"_

"_4 minutes. And we have about 3 minutes 56 second seconds left." Damien looked like he was extremely strained. "This is a mind scape, so I can make these minutes feel like hours. But the longer we go, the weaker our faculties and resources are… So, we really have until 1-minute left before it's too late."_

"_Since Faris is… out of it, do you know what's going on outside?"_

_Damien sighed as he tried to send information around and sense things. "Nothing…"_

Katya poured her minute reserves into Faris, she was aided by Alanna, and Dusan, Morgan, even Nya, but they hadn't the energy left to overcome whatever was preventing Faris's healing. Seya and Atlas were busy aiding Venka. Whose eyes were on Alpha the entire time. It was three on four, with Alpha, Theta, Zeta and Eta on one side, and Venka, Atlas, and Seya on the other. While Venka and Seya were both injured and exhausted, Atlas hadn't yet expended much of his resources since their last fight. And while he was temporarily weaker after recently reviving, he was still quite powerful. Alpha, Theta, Zeta, and Eta had spent the day fighting off Shades, who attacked them at invariable moments, to make matters worse for them, they hadn't been able to restore energy by resting, or increase in power by killing and absorbing spirits, some spell Tartarus had casted had insured the spirits would be quickly expelled from a dead shade. The shades they fought and slew before attacking the first years were no exception, and that battle had been especially grueling.

Atlas charged Alpha, attempting to get the girl in his arms to crush her, Alpha was exhausted, but had the speed to dodge his attempts. Seya had to contend with Eta and Theta. Theta was the stronger of the two, and Eta was faster than Seya herself.

"What's wrong?" Eta teased, "Too slow?" She ran circles around Seya, striking at her blind spots and clearing the way for Theta to try and knock Seya down. All the while their minds struck at Seya's attempting to crush it in a double coil. Seya could only defend her vitals, she knew any blow knocking her out, even if only for an instant would end things. Even as she fought, she felt some reservations, Eta and Theta were physically and mentally children, barely older than Faris by her reckoning, and had gone through similar tortures to achieve the power they had. Though she had no idea what they may have gone through while under the mad doctor's influence. This had been a bad time to let her thoughts wander, as she dodged and blocked their attacks, they pushed her back further and further.

Theta grinned as he forced Seya down. "I honestly don't see what the doctor sees in you, you may have been something great before. But Alpha's the top dog now." Seya struggled, blocking his punches on her prone form to the best of her ability, but she didn't have the speed or number of arms to dodge Eta's kick.

The thwack caught Venka's attention, who screamed out, "_flutningr!" (carry), _dragging Seya back through the air towards her, Seya's neck protruded oddly, slowly snapping back in place, Venka hid any squeamishness, already remembering how she repaired broken limbs before, instead she worried at the slowness of her healing, the enhanced children were overpowering them. _The problem is that girl._ Venka turned to Delta, who's eyes glowed an ethereal violet, like ghostly wisps her magic danced around her. If Venka wasn't exhausted, she thought she'd maybe be able to beat that girl, but both of them were tired, but the girl had more in reserves, and was a better magic user. Often Venka was on the back pedal as the girl lobbied spell after spell, doing her best to drain Venka's reserves.

"…Are you okay?" Seya said, wincing as the pounding in her skull slowly ceased and watching in awe and worry as Venka's protective wards blocked the combined might of Delta, Theta, Eta, and Zeta.

"I… I'm handling…" Venka said, but she was worried, it wasn't like a magic duel, where they fought to defeat the opponent, both sides wanted to kill. She felt momentary relief as Atlas barreled towards the enhanced children, covered in flames from Alpha's doing. "He's hurt."

"Better him than us." Seya got up, "Every second the shade buys us is a second we have to live, if they kill each other in the process…"

"But he's helping us…" Venka said, but she was halfhearted about it, even the momentary relief of Faris returning to them and the shock and anger of Alpha's sneak attack didn't get rid of the fear and trepidation. Shades were the nightmares, the boogeymen. Durza wasn't merely legend but a memory fresh in the minds of thousands, dying less than thirty years ago, but having far reaching implications. And the bodies, the mutilated bodies, all likely the doing of shades that they encountered. After nearly getting killed by Hruk, putting their faith in another shade wasn't a real possibility. They had even fought Atlas, he had almost killed Seya, and the elves. Through this they watched as Alpha fought against the odds.

_He did not remember who he was. He did not remember who he was to be. All he knew was that what he was, struck fear in men, but what he was felt nothing, neither pleasure nor pain in his actions, nothing but grim satisfaction in completing his goals, and whatever tasks put before him. The man with glasses had him lift heavy objects through the utterance of strange words, then conjuring fire, levitating, and a whole host of other seemingly useless tasks, at the end, he'd always be placed in chains, his connection to the power behind the words severed, and left there. He knew it was what ripped his original memories away, and he always viewed the chains with distaste, as if somehow, he felt or understood its alien-ness from himself, and everything he was. He was left without food or drink, and to let his magic drain out slowly, along with his blood. Yet as long as his heart wasn't pierced, and the chains kept him from using his power, he would not die. When the young shade found him, he felt fear for the first time. The enhanced children intimidated him, but their looks of contempt merely spurred indifference. What the shade had looked at him with was a mix of curiosity, and malice. The fear was the feeling of something stirring within him, as if the shade understood what he was, what shades were, and would help him regain his purpose and identity. That is why he pledged allegiance to Tartarus, that is why he took the name Atlas. When he had dived into Faris's mind as he took it back from Tartarus, he realized two things, the curiosity and malice, they were not the shade's reactions, his emotions were indifference, indifference and bloodlust. No, the boy's eyes radiated that malice. The second thing was a garnered truth of Atlas. Atlas for all his strength had chosen the losing side in the war between Titans and Gods, sticking to his Uncle, and fighting the would-be usurpers. Atlas had been smug, when the Gods threatened to slay their forebears, he stated that if Kronos and his three brethren who held the sky in Ouranos's stead perished, that the sky would fall and embrace the earth, destroying them all, Zeus, the king of gods, had laughed, for he had already determined Atlas's punishment. The titan of great strength and endurance had one duty, and to this duty he was forced. He was to hold the sky, bear the burden to protect the world that rebuked him as much as he rebuked it. Perhaps this knew knowledge gave him an epiphany, but he began to realize his old bloodlust, but even with this old bloodlust, a new emotion, a new thought, that perhaps living like Atlas, bearing this weight for the ones he was to hate, though now of his own choosing, as opposed to having no choice, would be an interesting endeavor._

"_Blautr Deloi!" _The earth around Atlas became soft and pliable, spreading out quickly, the enhanced children found their movements slow and unsteady on this new ground, as they were unable to get the full traction they were afforded before. Atlas took advantage of this to launch several large stones towards them, weakening their wards as they fought not just against the force of his magic pressing the stones down, but gravity and momentum as well.

"Skaja!" (stick out) Alpha shot to the surface of the dirt, shaking free of the sinking, she struck at Atlas, who deftly blocked, taking out her sword, she and the enhanced children surrounded Atlas, who hunched forward, rumbling like a bear of the Beor mountains. The children began attacking him in earnest, aiming for his tendons, to their surprise they found he had not yet fallen or slowed.

Atlas smiled as he employed the hardening technique, he had seen the girl do, whilst she used it for her arms and legs when attacking or landing or doing violent movements, he spread it all across, he had neither the skill nor foresight to protect one place. The fact he did not yield seemed to have the greatest effect on Theta, who struck repeatedly with his blade, attempting to hack off even a bit of his armor. The air around Atlas began to heat up and the children backed up as flames erupted from him, similar to his strike against Gamma. Whilst the enhanced children moved cautiously and Atlas smiled cockily, Morgan could only look on in worry, he was resting as well as he could, recovering as much magic as he could as Katya and the elves ran their ministrations over Faris, attempting to heal him, they still had little luck, while the exit wound to his heart had been righted, there was still the issue of connecting the correct valves and tubes that made the organ. Katya moved slowly, laboriously reconnecting one piece then another, but given what was going on, she and the twins did not have much time left.

"Nya…" Morgan began… "On my mark, we need to go and help him, he only used that fire attack when he got desperate, and they'll realize it too, despite what he says, their attacks probably tear into and weaken his arms more than he'd like to say."

Nya nodded, "Alright, what's the plan?"

"Remember the ground flood team? Nya winced, "No don't worry, if they sink that quickly into the ground it's perfect, we just need to break their concentration and force them down." Morgan sighed, "We've got one shot, they're faster than us, stronger than us, though I wouldn't say they're smarter than us, though they are definitely cocky. Show them what we've got!"

Alpha felt she was nearing victory, Atlas unleashed the flames more often, and his arms and legs moved more sluggishly, she cried out a silent victory as Eta's blade lodged itself in Atlas's shoulder, and Theta's blade stabbed into the shade's knee, she charged forward, prepared to stab him in the heart and win this battle.

Nya picked up a piece of rubble, as she and Morgan ran forward, she cocked her arm back, with expert precision she used a tiny bit of her magic to enhance the muscles she needed, a bit of her back, shoulders, triceps and even wrist, even her glutes and hips helped in twisting to launch her deadly payload. Just as she launched the rock, she cast two more spells, one to force it from her hand, it was already moving at max speed, she added a superhuman impetus to the mix, and combined it with her spell piercing, directing the ancient language to make sure the point would make it first. The stone sung through the air before striking Alpha hard in the hand causing it to break and hang limply. Nya kept herself from winching as she saw past the torn skin and muscle and into the bone, which was slowly knitting itself back together. Alpha stared hard at the furrow in her hand, screaming in rage and charging towards Nya.

"Garjzla!" _light_, Alpha blinked as a flash of bright light appeared before her, even as it passed harmlessly, she found herself without the target she had aimed for. Morgan smiled innocently as he cried out his second set of spells. _"Thringa Fram!"_ _"Vaetna deloi!"_

Alpha saw the already soft earth below her begin to form a depression, spinning almost like a sink hole, immediately followed by a downward force from Morgan's spell. She was about to word a retaliation when Nya leapt from the ceiling, striking down with her foot and launching Alpha into the waiting sinking earth, this combined effort launched her down to the bottom, creating a muddy crater, the earth though did not spread out, but instead began to flow back into the hole, burying Alpha quickly as Nya and Morgan chanted rapidly in the ancient language, growing paler by the second. The other enhanced children attempted to stop them, but Atlas, joined by a still exhausted by slightly rested Seya and Venka held them back. The earth began to bubble and hiss, heating up rapidly until everyone was launched back. Alpha, wreathed in scarlet flames looked incensed as she rose from what had almost been her tomb. _"Hamarr!"_ Morgan and Nya scrabbled back as the dirt began to harden, the outcroppings jutting out as if in order to cut into them. Eventually Seya leapt in, grabbing them and leaping out of the way as Venka and Atlas pushed back the stones.

The enhanced children by now had exhausted themselves enough to no longer push themselves out of the dirt, standing ankle deep they began to send out their final mental assault, preparing to slay their interlopers.

"…_They, they're healing him it seems." Damien said, but… it's not fast enough, and we still don't have a way to restart his heart. And we lost too much blood."_

"_You're in dire straits it seems." They looked to see the spirit, the bindings holding it now nonexistent. Damien could only look on in exhausted resignation as he felt the spirit subsume all their egos, becoming Tartarus again._

"…_Dammit…"_

Katya didn't move from her spot as the enhanced children railed against her friend's meager defenses, she didn't move when they broke through and charged towards her, she didn't move even when the enhanced human cut into her shoulder, concentrating on healing her friend she was only moved finally when she was knocked away. The twin's ministrations on her kept her conscious, but she looked in horror and shame as they raised their blades to finish their job and kill her friend. Her expression changed to shock as they were blown back, a shock matched by her friends as Faris stood back up.

"Faris?" Venka looked on with hope, then desperation as she saw the glowing red eyes again, the color of hate.

"Shush… all of you…" Tartarus looked at the enhanced children, then at his hosts friends. "You thought you won, didn't you? You all? Thought you had your friend back, you? You thought an enemy was finally slain. But you are all wrong, I will turn back the _dreyma_(illusion) of victory you sought to achieve." He laughs. _"Galdr iet strengr lif! Galdr iet sharjalví! Herdtha iet lam!" (strengthen my vitality, enhance my speed, harden my hands)_ "Herdtha deloi unin iet gata" _(Harden the earth in my path)_ He moved with greater ferocity than even the enhanced children, blowing past and striking them with his attacks, each movement used to brake a bone, even as they attacked him mentally and struck with magic to break down his wards he attacked.

_Dammit! The spirit still had so much power?! No matter, he's on his last legs like us anyway, we'll kill him…_ Alpha's hopes were dashed as Tartarus seemed to fade out of existance.

"I'm up here," Looking up, they saw he had conjured what appeared to be a massive amount of steaming air, panicking they marveled at the energy required, and the heat radiating off it, even from the ceiling they could feel the heat.

"We! We're here too Faris!" Nya called out fearfully.

"I don't care." Tartarus crowed, _"Thringa!" _The mist came down, the children began to feel unbearably hot.

"_Svell!"_ (ice) The enhanced children screamed in unison, encasing themselves in a block of ice to protect themselves from the heat, for some reason, they still felt the great heat, even as the cold slowed them, and caused them to shiver and shudder. Tartarus smiled, his form dissipating, the heat along with it.

"I told you, the illusion of your victory was never there to begin with. Though neither was my heat." He turned to his hosts friends, they huddled together, pale and frostbitten from the children's spells, turning to the enhanced children they were half buried in the mud, which now froze from their spell and kept them immobilized from the waist down. The cold was likely unbearable, which led to them being slowed, even then their magic was keeping them alive, activating to keep them warm and warm the ground around them, in hopes of saving them. Tartarus hummed as he walked along, he needed to quicken the pace of their deaths. Crouching before them he spoke. "Eenie, meenie, miney, moe… catch a tiger by its toe, if it hollers let it go, eenie… meenie… miney… moe…" His finger stopped in front of Eta, who seemed the most cognizant of the children still. "Oh…" Concern seemed to drip from his voice, "You must be so cold…" His hands closed in around her neck. "I'll quicken it for you…" Tartarus smiled, humming as Eta struggled against him, her cracked voice crying out choked sobs of pain. The other enhanced children turned to try and stop him, but they were too cold to think coherently, and barely able to move. Tartarus's smile widened as the girl's life began to fade before him.

"_STOP IT!"_

Tartarus twitched as Faris struggled to regain supremacy. _"Just stay down, you've already proven how incompetent you are, you want to leave them alive to kill you?!" _He tightened his grip both around Eta's neck and on Faris's mind.

"**_STOP IT!"_**

Tartarus felt his hands fall slack, he grunted in anger. Eta began to cough and breath, the panic seeming to wake her up and alert her, dragging herself upwards she screamed in pain, even though Tartarus was on his knees in front of her, her fear was too great, and she ran from the room, running for her life to find help however she could find it. "Great, now she's going to-" He was interrupted when someone smacked him hard. "Who wants to die…" He turned around, freezing in place as he saw Venka. "Dammit, what do you want bitch." He forced himself to relax, suppressing his bloodlust. Any false moves would allow Faris to take over.

"Give back Faris!" Venka cocked her fist back to punch Tartarus, Tartarus blocked it, using the movement to pull Venka into him.

"I'm sorry Mario but the Princess is in another castle."

"What are you talking about!?" Venka cried out, struggled against his embrace, she attempted to head butt him, but struck his chin, hurting herself instead."

_Dammit! It wasn't even my fault that time! _"_Malthinae!" (hold)_ Venka shook in surprise as she was suspended in movement, floating eye level in front of Tartarus, who put his hand to her chin. "For someone with a hard head, you are pretty on the eyes. No wonder he's head over heels for you." He pulls one of the enhanced children's swords from the ground. Eliciting a look of fear and anger from Venka, who struggles against the magic holding her to little avail, however much power he put into this spell, it shouldn't take so long for her to break out. "Trade secret darlin." Tartarus winked, "Now," He turns to the enhanced children. He's interrupted by a rock hitting him in the small of his back, he collapses in pain as the first years tackled him, they struck his mind, attempting to hold it down. Tartarus laughed as they did.

_Venka uses what little of her magic is left to enhance her friends as they pool their resources to invade the shade's mind, Faris had broken out once, and they hoped his hesitation in strangling Eta meant he was still fighting back. Nya and Venka hammered at the shade's walls, with Morgan and Dusan looking for any purchase or flaw to enter and take hold. At times they held the Shade down, but his defenses never gave way, most of the time he'd be on the offense. And the combined effort of Katya and Allana was their saving grace. Allana's great defense gave no purchase for Tartarus to burst through easily, and the few times he did he had the laborious task of worming his way past Katya's multiple barriers, only to be surrounded and constricted by the group. Even as he fought them in what seemed an eternity, Faris fought against him from the other side, whenever an attack from his friends was on the rise, he'd attempt to push away barriers and interrupt the flow of thoughts. Tartarus felt greater and greater desperation. "Fine! You want your body back so badly?! Not with my magic!" Uttering words in quick succession too quick for any to understand or counter Tartarus cried out in pain, collapsing, his mind broke down, revealing only blackness as Faris's friends pulled out of his mind._

"Did we…" Nya began, they looked at Faris, breathing sighs of relief as his chest slowly rose and fell.

"We… we need to get out of here," Venka began, looking away, troubled."

"Yeah…" Morgan got up, looking around. "The shade… he's gone." They looked and saw that to be the case.

"Good riddance." Seya began.

"But now he could be wreaking havoc topside." Katya said, panic beginning to rise in her voice.

"No, I didn't sense…" Alanna began, shaking in exhaustion. She huddled near Dusan and the others, they shared in the meager warmth they had in the freezing room.

"Let's leave no while we can." Dusan said finally, gingerly getting up.

"No one's leaving." They turned in fear to see Beta, walking in, face a mask of hatred. "You are all dead."

"No… no they aren't." It was Beta's turn to turn in rage as the main entrance opened, revealing a few dozen guards and mages. Leading them was Celica and Rakus, right behind them was Bergan, Merigold, and Maya, who was nursing a broken arm. Bartholomew stood at the very back, Ventus in a cage. "Stand down." Celica spoke, hiding her rage barely.

Beta's facial features smoothed as he calmed down, taking a more diplomatic tone he spoke again, "It seems we are at an impasse." He smiled, "If you strike out to kill me, I'll kill those children you care about, and I can escape your attacks… But I want my allies, how about this? You promise me that if you let me take my allies and leave this room, I'll promise to take them and leave those kids of your alone." The teen's smile was perfectly sculpted, masking whatever truth he may have had hidden.

"You first."

Beta promised, on the grounds that if they made an oath in the ancient language to allow him and his allies freely out of the room, would they be able to take the children out safely. After making the corresponding promise in turn the two parties began their work, looking at each other the entire time. It was only until the procession made it out of the cave system that they allowed themselves time to breath in relief. The first thing that happened then was Bergan walking up to Venka, who sat by Faris, she looked at him dumbly, unable to react in time as he smacked her.

"You all were stupid." He began, "You could have gotten yourselves killed, and then what? We declare war against a group we don't even fully understand?!" Venka merely looked down. Bergan grit his teeth and shook his head. "You all are in a lot of trouble. The elves will go ballistic when they find out."

"They won't." Alanna began. Dusan followed.

"We all made the choice to go, you can insult and berate us for our foolishness, but don't punish our friends more for our collective decision." He looked at Bergan evenly.

"That settles that then…" Celica muttered, looking forward. "Nya?" Nya looked fearfully at her big sister. "I heard you faced a shade, and won, is this true?"

Nya nodded, "But we got captured in the end anyway…" She was surprised when her big sister ruffled her hair.

"You did a good job all things considered. But you are in a lot of trouble, father is livid." Nya was too exhausted to groan.

The procession continued on until they reached the capital. They entered like heroes, doing their best to mask that they were missing a third of their number, and doing their best to keep the public from seeing the looks of soberness in the eyes of their returning heroes. As soon as Sona got a look at Faris she rushed him to the emergency room, for that reason she was missing from the council deliberation that took place the following week. Not just the council thirteen were present, but teachers, administration, and even a few of the Queen's personal mages were in attendance.

"Lord Jaya, whilst I understand that it is fortunate the children made it back alive, I must say I'd find it disconcerting if there was no punishment at all." Lord Jaya turned to look at Nasuada. He marveled at her willpower, when Trianna had died, she had led to recovery of the city and the purging of intruders. Even now she was keeping herself from delving into emotions. But she was incensed when she found out the children had nearly killed themselves, or worse, ended up being experiments like the ones reported by the state mages.

"I understand, but we must tread carefully, this situation is as much our doing as theirs."

"Oh?" Nasuada opened her eyes in mock shock, "And how so?"

"Please, Rembrant was trusted, by all of us, we disagreed with his anti-mage sentiment, though I know some of you agreed. He was able to fool us all, Faris still committed a crime, but we wouldn't have had this rescue if not for Rembrant, and now the boy struggles for his life."

Venka looked up, "What?"

Ignoring her Jaya continued, "That doesn't take away what they've done, I know. But they also did admirably against the enhanced children, who had defeated Bergan, Merigold, and Maya and their mages and warriors."

"I still find this notion of enhanced warriors somewhat absurd."

"But it explains Faris does it not?"

The first thing of note when one had seen Faris's unconscious body was that Faris's hair had become a deep scarlet, even when his eyes flickered back to their true color, his hair was still dyed red, as if the after effects of the magic took hold and would stay, as a reminder. For the squads who entered Dr. Mendel's lair, the shades were the first things that came to their mind when they saw the unconscious Faris, but the children's pleas kept them from killing the boy as a precaution outright. Bergan had found himself at an impasse at that moment, and perhaps it had been best that Faris hadn't woken up during that trip, as a sign he was either alright or truly turned would have broken the man either way. It was an uncomfortable topic, especially when combined with the children's testimony of a shade fighting the enhanced children, and the occurrence of several shades, at least 10 by their reckoning, though likely more, and truthfully more. Seya's hair only turned white sometimes, so no one thought to connect her and the enhanced children luckily.

"Perhaps, but even then…" Nasuada began. "Whatever punishment it will be, it serves two purposes, these children did admirably, but they broke our rules. The punishment must take into context their actions, but take into context that the rest of the mages in training look on. We cannot let them go so easily."

Lord Jaya nodded, "I have the perfect punishment then, Silver Initiates."

The council leapt to arms, even the others flinched in surprise, the children looked on, feeling like crying.

"Wait…" Lord Jaya kept them from speaking out, "I understand your surprise, but it's the only punishment that works. We can't afford to revoke their magic, or take them from their classes, what we can do is lower their status amongst their peers. Losing their Pearl Initiate status takes away natural hierarchy in many parts of the school, they can work to regain it, but it has still been lost. Losing their Pearl status also revokes the payment of energy students had been giving them. They now would have to refight their way to the top. And…" He looked at the mages, "Being left with only so much magic leaves them lacking."

"And what about you Lord Jaya?" Nasuada began.

"Well, it's my responsibility for the casualties." Lord Jaya smiled, "It's only right I take a leave of absence from my position as I contemplate and rethink my actions, is what you're going to say right?" He frowned, "Who's my replacement?"

"That will be determined." Nasuada gritted her teeth, even when back peddling Jaya seemed to grate on her nerves. She missed the times she worried more about her enemies than her allies.

"What about Faris?" Venka asked.

"Oh? The boy…"

"What are you doing! Think about the patients!" She hissed.

"We need to see Faris." Morgan began.

"You need to calm down, the patient should be asleep, we just administered some minor anesthetics and-" She was cut off as they all heard something tumbling to the floor. Rushing past her the first year former Pearls ran in to see their friend.

The first to react discernably was Katya, who covered her mouth with her hands.

Faris's skin was blotched and discolored from the neck down, several fractal like scars covered him, like he had been struck by lightning and it had branded him with its mark, arcing across his arms and legs, in the center of his back was the deepest discoloration, dark purple dots lined the center of his back vertically, like they interacted with the jutting points of his spine, and 8 lines seemed to arc out from the center spot, like a spider. Faris's iris's lacked true color, coming across as a milky white, as if he was a ghost. His pupils looked small in comparison. His lips were chapped from slight dehydration, and his cheeks wet as he scrabbled across the floor. "_Stenr reisa!"_ They followed his outstretched hand, looking emaciated, like the rest of his form, a few inches away from his prone form was a tiny stone pebble. Faris cried out in anguish, not from the excruciating pain he was in, but at the stone in front of him. _"Stenr reisa!"_ He screamed, his friends held their breath, waiting for the stone to rise. Waiting for it to lift in the air, do a somersault, cartwheel, anything at all, just not stay there. Faris glared at the stone, he looked up at his friends, eyes glazed as he seemed to not recognize them, slowly he did, but his expression did not change for the better, it simply twisted in shame. Looking away he clutched the stone, placing it in the palm of his hand.

"Faris…"

_Faris looked around his battered mind scape, he felt himself, but felt no one else. It dawned on him then. There was no one else, it was his magic all along, his magic allowing him to interact with the memories he took. Except Tartarus, he thought he could treat the spirit the same, he deluded himself in treating it as the same thing. But he was wrong. Now, without magic, he could hear no one else, feel no one else, be no one else._

"…_Stenr reisa…." _His voice was tinged in desperation, _"please…"_

…

End of Book 1

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Afterword:

Thanks for reading through all of this, book 2 will be titled: The Scarlett Sunset, I wish you all a fantastic day or night. And hope you enjoyed these first 60 chapters.


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